Come and Meet Our Team

We offer progressive instruction in a positive learning environment.  ADVENT teaches life skills that go hand in hand with swimming skills, which develop the whole athlete. We are different because our program is designed for those who want to learn swimming skills faster than with any other swim program (Click to read about the differences).

ADVENT is a non-profit organization offering high-quality professional coaching, focusing on stroke technique instruction at the grass-roots level. Our mission is to provide every member with the opportunity to improve their swimming skills and achieve success at any level, from beginning swimmers to Olympic champions and world record holders.

Our Program & Coaches

DMITRIY KONONENKO

(PROGRAM DIRECTOR AND HEAD COACH)

  • From 2015 – Developed an evidence-based program with a unique approach to deliver fast learning gains for ADVENT’s members

  • 2015 – CSCTA, Speedo Domestic Excellence Award for gold medal winners

  • 2015 – Prepared athletes for the World Championship (A Final), Speedo Western Canadian Champs (3 gold medals) & Canadian Senior Nationals
    (A Final)

  • 2014 – Prepared six athletes for the Speedo Western Canadian Championships (1 gold & 1 Silver medals) and Canadian Trials

  • 2013 – Prepared six athletes for 2013 NCAA Division II Championships
    (2 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze medals and a new NCAA Division II Record)

  • 2004 to 2013 – Prepared twelve Senior Nationals for his nine years of coaching at SFU and SFA

  • 2012 – Coached at the Canadian Junior Pan Pac National Team (2gold,
    2 silver & 1 bronze medals, new Canadian Age record and 2 BC records)

  • 2012 – Prepared four swimmers for the Canadian Olympic Trials

  • 2011 to 2015 – Volunteer on the Swim BC Technical Advisory and
    Finance committee

  • 2011 – BC Swim Team, Tucson Ford Dealers Invitational, Women’s Head Coach (2 gold medals)

  • 2011 – Prepared swimmers for the World Junior Championships,
    Peru (A Final)

  • 2011 – Prepared swimmers for the World Championships Trials

  • 2011 – Swimming Canada, Dr. Jeno Tihanyi Memorial Award

  • 2010 – Coached BC Swim Team at the Paul Bergen Invitational

  • 2010 – Prepared swimmers for the North American Challenge Cup
    (4 gold medals)

  • 2010 – Prepared swimmers for the Pan Pac Trials (A & B Finals)

  • 2009 – Attended and prepared swimmers for the Paul Bergen Junior International

  • 2009 & 2010 – North American Challenge Cups with meet records
    and eight Gold medals

  • 2009 – Prepared athlete for the Canada Games (two BC Age Records)

  • 2008 – CSCTA, Speedo Domestic Excellence Award

  • 2007 – Prepared three swimmers for the 2007 LC Provincial Age Group Team for annual BC/Alberta Dual Swim Meet, Canada

  • 2007 – BC Provincial Age Group/Prospect Team at the Pan Coast All Star Meet, Head Coach

  • 2006 – CSCTA, Speedo Domestic Excellence Award

  • 2000 – Prepared two athletes for the Senior European Championship

  • 2000 – Prepared three swimmers for the Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia (Igor Chervynskiy (1500m: 15:08.80), Igor Snitko (1500 Free: 15:14.67), Yana Klochkova (200 IM: 2:12.68 & 800 Free: 8:22.66).  Dmitriy coached the athletes from their novel level to the Olympic stage.  He prepared athletes for the Olympic and immigrated to Canada.  Coach Dmitriy delegated coaching of these swimmers to other coaches, Nina and Oleksandr Kozhukh.

  • 1999 – Prepared Gold medalist who established European Record
    in 1500 freestyle

  • 1998 – Prepared swimmers who established three Ukrainian swim records

  • 1996 – Prepared two athletes for the Olympic Game in Atlanta, USA

  • 1992 – Prepared five swimmers for the Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain

  • 1988 – Prepared five swimmers for the Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea

Our Mission is to provide only productive training.  We believe that respect, trust, honesty and full commitment are important things of the success.

Maximum and productive practice time where children are kept busy practicing their swimming is vital.  Our experienced coaches are:

  • Patient teachers

  • And that they keep children busy and active

We take care of little kids and careful determine how confident they are in the water.  Children who train more than once a week with professional coaches improve skills faster.

If you, as a parent, are not prepared to be patient persist and encourage your child all year round you cannot expect to gain the social, health, and safety benefits that children gain from learning to swim at an early age.

Finally, fear is another factor that can slow down a child’s progress.

Patience is a quality teachers require if they are teaching a frightened child to swim.  Any swimming lessons that force or terrify children against their will are totally inappropriate.  We know how to teach children and help parents to be more patient and happy with the results.

Our coaches have no believe in make up lessons.  Make up lessons which are slotted into regular classes are very disruptive.  Children are placed into groups for the convenience of parents often with teachers they don’t know and students of varying ability levels. This often causes dissatisfaction for other members, as the make up lesson distracts from the regular class.

Make up lessons are difficult for administration to manage.  They encourage parents to be inconsistent with lesson attendance.  If family’s understand there is a no make up lesson policy they turn up for their class and children progress faster.

We like to compensate missed lessons by offering intensive camps during Winter and Spring school breaks. Usually, children are grouped into classes according to their ability level and in an environment that is conducive for learning.  During this intensive and productive time parents will see rapid improvements in their kids’ swimming.

We Offer:

  • “Train-to-Learn”- training camp for kids (for 1-4 individuals per lane & high-performance swim coach, duration 1-1.5 hour).

  • “Train-to-Improve”- training camp for stroke correction for 1-4 kids (duration 1 hour or longer).

  • “Train-to-Win”- training camp for swimmers.  The camp is for 1-4 individuals (duration 1 hour or longer).

  • Dry-land Workouts for athletes.

  • Group Swim Camps for kids.

  • Competitive Para-Swimming Program for 8-15 year old athletes (evaluation required for all individuals with impairments that fit under the Swimming Canada classification system. Please contact us). Read more about Para-Swimming here (click to open)  At this moment we don’t provide training to non-competitive para-swimmers.  Sorry for any inconvenience.

  • Training consultation for professional athletes.

Our Groups

INTRO (6-9 years)- for children who have basic swimming skills and can swim 50m continuously:

  • 1 hour of in-water training per day, 1 practice per week (Friday evenings).

Mini ADVANCE- child must swim 100-200m IM (all four strokes) or 100-200m freestyle, backstroke & breaststroke continuously:

  • 1-1.5 hour of in-water training per day, 2 practices a week plus 30 min dry-land training, running & yoga-flexibility (Monday & Friday)

ENTRY- child must swim 200m IM (all four strokes) or 200m freestyle, backstroke & breaststroke continuously:

  • 1.5 hour of in-water training per day, 2 practices per week on Wednesday & Friday evenings

Junior (10-15 years):

  • 1.5 hour of in-water training per day, 3-4 practices a week plus dry-land training, running & yoga-flexibility (Monday, Wednesday & Friday)

Senior (competitive swimmers):

  • 1.5-2 hour of in-water training per day, 5-6 practices a week plus dryland, running, yoga-flexibility & gym

NOTE:  Our groups are designed by the level of each child’s achievements (his or her swimming skills).  Click to read our FAQ about the differences and benefits of being a member.

***Please contact us for more details about each group and other available opportunities.  Always welcome new members!

RATE & PRICING

– “Train-to-Learn” camp for pre-school age kids 30-60 min (individual training, please consider to add 30 min. increments)

– “Train-to-Learn” camp for kids (1-4 individuals with no swimming skills, 1 hour or longer, please consider to add 30 min. increments)

– “Train-to-Improve” camp for stroke correction (1-4 kids, duration 1 hour or longer, please consider to add 30 min. increments)

– “Train-to-Win” training camp for athletes.  The camp is for 1-4 individuals (1 hour or longer, please consider to add 30 min. increments).

– Group lessons for kids: assessment required, please call to book your assessment.  

NOTE: Assessment required for all new members.  Fees and pricing will be discussed at your assessment.  Participants being confirmed into the program will be provided additional information on how to process their program fee.  Exact costs vary, but all participants have to pay registration dues that cover  National Sport Organization (NSO) & Provincial Sport Organization (PSO) registration for the current training season (September 1st – August 31st).  Program fees depend on your or your child’s needs, length of the training and other factors.

Please call at 604-419-0513 to book your assessment.

ADVENT makes every effort to keep its members up to date on what is happening in the swim club and the swimming community. Please use the club’s website: news & members pages. PSO is a governing body for all swim clubs in BC. All swimmers must be registered with National & Provincial Organizations and pay required fees. Different guides as well as much more interesting information available here (click to open).

NEWS & UPDATES, Provincial Sport Organization (PSO)

PSO REGISTRATION FEES

MUST PAY

Below is a portion of registration fees

1. Pre-Competitive Swimmers (any age):  

$51.75 per swimmer for September 1 – August 31

2. Summer Swimmers (Starting May 1):

 $14.50 per swimmer May 1 through August 31

3. Competitive Swimmers (any age) : $163.00 

NOTE: The fee to upgrade a swimmer is the difference between Pre-Competitive fee and the corresponding Competitive fee.  From September 1st to March 31st all swimmers are required to pay regular PSO fees as above.  Pre-Competitive swimmers may participate in only one competitive opportunity (excluding BC Champs & Swimming Canada Competitions); prior to competing in their second competition, swimmers’ registration must be upgraded to the Competitive category (see above), which corresponds to their age as of December 31st of the last year. Swimmers cannot be downgraded to this category within a registration season (September to August).  Registration is valid from September 1st to August 31st of each training season. 

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 For your reference, please visit Swim BC website for more details.