Swimmers try their hands (and feet) in the Eliminator

Over the past decade or so, so-called "Eliminator Races" have produced some outstanding finishes as many of the top male and female swimmers in Northern Ontario fight it out at the unique event, which caps off the East Side Mario's Invitational Swim Meet at the Jeno Tihanyi Pool.

Still, the May 8-10 competition found a way to break new ground, producing a never-before-seen scenario.

First, some background. The Eliminator brings together eight competitors from a variety of swim clubs in the last race of the night on the Saturday and Sunday of the meet.

The race begins with a 200m freestyle swim, with the last place finisher eliminated. The remaining contestants have 30 seconds or so to get back on the starting blocks and do it all over again, this time covering 100m with the freestyle.

Again, the last place swimmer is out. This continues right down to the final two athletes, who then duke it out for bragging rights. The 2015 women's race was down to three swimmers when history was made.

Allison Cudmore, Natalie Lefebvre and Morgan Kivinen — all part of the Sudbury Laurentian Swim Club — were looking to cut down to the two finalists, when Lefebvre and Kivinen finished in a dead heat, both posting the exact same time — to the hundredth of a second — less than a second behind Cudmore.

The finish meant that the ladies would be forced to tack an extra 100m freestyle on the their itinerary, with Kivinen eliminated on the second go around, and Cudmore besting Lefebvre in the final.

"I've never swam it before, I've only ever watched it, so it was pretty exciting to swim it for the first time," admitted Cudmore. "I was pretty much told to take it easy, don't go until you have to, and have fun with it."

But with all eight lanes in use right out of the gate, this strategy is much easier said than done.

"Sometimes, I lost track of where other people were," said Cudmore. "I think in the first heat, I went out a lot harder than I think I needed to, because I didn't know where everyone was."

The Sudbury Laurentian Swim Club completed the sweep the next evening, when Christopher Eastick beat out Gavin Staalstra of the Nickel City Aquatics for the title.