George Washington University Athletics
Atherley Heads to Commonwealth Games
4/2/2018 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
"It's great to know you've achieved your goal, something that you've set your mind to," Atherley said. "Twenty hours a week (of training) for four years is a lot of time. All the 5 a.m. wake-ups, cutting my hair off, the chlorine smell every day, everything like that. It all comes down to this, basically."
Coming off a strong sophomore season with the Colonials, Atherley is on the Gold Coast of Australia this week to compete in the XXI Commonwealth Games, a multi-sport competition featuring the members of the Commonwealth of Nations held every four years. This time, 71 nations are expected to participate.
Atherley is set to swim six events over five days at Gold Coast Aquatic Center, beginning Thursday with the 200-meter freestyle. She's among 33 athletes representing her native Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands off the coast of France with a population of roughly 10,000.
"This is just a fantastic opportunity for Gemma," GW head coach James Winchester said. "For someone like myself who grew up in the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth Games are a big deal.
It doesn't involve every nation in the world, but for those that are within the Commonwealth nations, it's something you grow up watching and wanting to be a part of, and I know, for Gemma, this experience in Australia is going to be a tremendous step for her development as a swimmer and something that's going to last a lifetime."
Atherley said she honed in on qualifying for the Commonwealth Games four years ago when two members of her swim club were selected to participate in the last edition held in Glasgow, Scotland.
One of them qualified for a semifinal alongside Olympic gold medalist Adam Peaty. All the sudden, a memory like that didn't feel so far away.
Still, Atherley's times needed significant improvement. She doubled down on her training and laid out a plan to get there.
Atherley's decision to swim collegiately in the U.S. was part of that blueprint, and Winchester's enthusiasm for preparing his athletes to compete internationally played a major factor in her pick of GW.
With the Buff and Blue, she's shown the steady development needed to state her case for a spot with the Jersey contingent in Australia.
"It's not always been easy, but I enjoy it," Atherley said. "Swimming de-stresses me, so I think that's why I've kept going."
Atherley won a silver medal as part of GW's 400-yard freestyle relay and qualified for finals in all three of her individual events at last season's Atlantic 10 Championships, but she didn't feel like she performed her best.
She said that sense of missed opportunity fueled her training last summer in her homeland and continued to drive her into the fall back in Foggy Bottom.
Winchester said he's seen Atherley get more comfortable with life at GW, in and out of the pool, and flourish because of it.
"Not that she didn't have that competitive fire last year, but she was still adapting," Winchester said. "This year, it's like `This is what I want, and I'm going to go get it.'"
Atherley's Commonwealth Games invitation came shortly after a shining performance at the Magnus Cup in November. Her time of 2:00.45 in the 200-yard backstroke was particularly impressive, shaving nearly four seconds off her best swim in the same event at the meet last season.
Atherley and Grand Valley State (Mich.) sophomore Harry Shalamon were the two swimmers picked to represent Jersey, which is also sending athletes in track and field, badminton, cycling, shooting, gymnastics and lawn bowling.
"Gemma would be the first to admit she's not the most outgoing, bubbly type of person, but you could tell how much it meant to her," Winchester said. "To help someone achieve a life goal, it's special."
Atherley headed to Australia on March 23 feeling in top form. The sophomore showed her progress at the A-10 Championships in February, winning four medals, including a gold in the 800-yard freestyle relay.
She set career bests in all three of her individual swims, setting program records in both the 200-yard backstroke (1:58.24) and 200-yard freestyle (1:48.60), to help the Colonials finish third in the team standings.
At the season-closing CSCAA National Invitational Championship, Atherley scored in both the 200 back and 200 IM and swam a leg on GW's bronze-medal 800 free relay.
"This year, I dropped time, even in events that I wouldn't say I'm that good at," Atherley said. "I swam better than I ever expected, so it's a big confidence boost knowing that you can go a lot faster than you thought you could."
Since then, Atherley has been honing in on the details, getting ready for her turn on the national stage. It's a long course meet, so she's been working hard on getting the pacing of her races right in the bigger pool.
She's largely avoided specific goals, though she'd be thrilled to advance past morning qualifying in an event or two. Mostly, she wants to make sure she enjoys the experience and learns from it as much as anything.
Atherley's whole family has made the trip to Australia, and she's excited to look into the crowd before her races and search among the sea of 10,000-plus fans for her father proudly waving the Jersey flag. She knows the hours that went into making that kind of a moment possible.
"Although I haven't qualified for one of the big teams, it's amazing to have a spot in a meet like this with some of the best athletes in the world," Atherley said. "Even just to stay in the village with all those big names and people that are really, really good, it's really exciting for me."
Players Mentioned
