Full Ride For Fleming

By Shawn Cayley

AJAX -- Michelle Fleming knows she didn't get to where she is today all on her own.

The 17-year-old member of the Ajax Aquatic Club and newest recruit to Texas Christian University will be the first to admit it.

"I came to the club when I was (nine) and I have loved it ever since I got here. Everyone has been so nice. We're like a family here," the Whitby resident says of her experience in Ajax. "Everyone is so close. (Coach) Matt (Bell) helps us so much with everything ... I know I wouldn't be where I am without the team."

Ever since her early years in the pool, Fleming has been consistently good, according to Bell, and it comes as no surprise that she has secured a scholarship.

"She has always been one of those consistent breast stroke competitors in Ontario since she was a kid. At national meets she has always been between first and sixth," Bell says. "We kind of always knew she would get (a scholarship). She is a great all-around athlete ... she's always had that general athleticism. It's nice because she has been at this club for so long. That's what we pride ourselves on. Yes, you come here and invest all your time and money, but in the end it's going to pay off."

It certainly has for Fleming, who when the scholarship process began, estimates she heard from at least 20 schools with varying interest after recruiter Rick Paine built her portfolio and sent it out to some 400 schools across the United States.

The first one to get in touch was TCU, and when Fleming went for a visit, her mind was made up.

"As soon as I walked on campus I knew that is where I wanted to be. The team was so nice and I liked everything they had to show me. Richard (Sybesma), the coach there, he was really nice. Everything they had to offer was a fit for me."

Making that choice was the easy part. Informing other interested schools that she was going elsewhere, was not, says Fleming.

"I think the hardest part was telling other coaches that I had went on trips to visit that I was going to go somewhere else," she recalls. "I had gotten to know them, and some of them had come up here to visit me, so when I had to tell them 'sorry I am not going to sign here' that was the hardest part."

With the scholarship all wrapped up, Fleming will now focus on making an impact at the university level, while also working to the point, she hopes, of earning a spot on the Canadian Olympic team.