In the early morning hours on Wednesday, July 20th, at the Dresden Swim Center, there was already a flurry of activity for the day as cars began to fill not only the swim center parking lot, but the lots for both the middle school and elementary school as well. All in all, over 1,000 swimmers and 2,000 spectators converged on Dresden For the Tri-County Aquatic League Championships.
Teams from all over the state traveled to the Dresden Swim Center for the Olympic-sized swimming pool as Dresden’s swim team, the Dresden Dorados, led by coach Christi Holmes, prepared for one of the larger outdoor swim meets in the state.
Twelve Ohio teams gathered for two sessions that spanned almost twelve hours leading into the mid-evening, bringing their families to cheer them on.
The huge influx of traffic to the small town of Dresden brought many economic benefits to area businesses as well as to the Swim Center itself. With nearly 700,000 gallons of water, locker rooms, bathrooms, and the hangout restaurant, and other facilities at the center, the cost of upkeep and maintenance can be a real challenge. The event brought in right around $12,000 dollars with the cost of renting the facility as well as sales through the hangout for food vending, providing a much-needed shot in the arm since the center is not subsidized and is solely maintained by community support each year. It was the single best day for the pool since its purchase by the village in 2014, if not ever.
The event was a wrap-up for the Dorados summer season as they finished a respectable 3rd in the mid-sized team division with 72 best times and several new team records. They followed the meet with a celebration and pool party on July 23rd.
“The Dorado coaching staff is really proud of our swimmers and their efforts this summer. We had a lot of fun coaching them, and we hope they had a lot of fun swimming too! We’re hoping they’ll all be back next summer!” stated coach Holmes.
