Milton 2019

From left to right: Gregg Thurlbeck, Barrie Malloch, and Margot Wheeler

It was a great day for a swim meet, cold and rainy. The ATB hard cores, consisting of Barrie (Chatty) Malloch, Coach Gregg and Margot travelled to the Milton Sportsplex to compete. After some technical issues the meet got underway. The small contingency of swimmers huddled in the stands together close to the action. After waiting patiently for our longest event (400 metres free) even with the close proximity, Barrie missed her heat. Too busy working the crowd catching up with old friends. Margot, dragged her away from her friends and convinced her to swim the event, Gregg worked his magic and got her a lane in the next heat. After the swim, we had a nice meal (almost as good as ours) and called it a day.


Patty Thompson

Beginning in the 10 and under age group swimming, Patty started setting records and kept it up through each age division. She held more Ontario titles than any other female in the Province. In one year she held 19 Ontario records, showing not only the quality but the diversity of her swimming.

Patty was the finest long distance freestyle swimmer in Canada, holding Canadian records for distances of 220 and 440 yards and 800 and 1500 metres. In 1964, Patty became the first Canadian woman to break the 5-minute barrier for the 400 metre freestyle.

Internationally, Patty represented Canada at the 1962 British Empire & Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia, where she placed second and third in relay events. She also represented Canada at the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, where her relay team placed seventh.

To read much more about Patty, click on the links below.