'The pressure is off': B.C.'s oldest competitive swimmer calling it quits after final race

At 97 years old, Alfred Schulhofis B.C.'s oldest competitive swimmer and the oldest active member of Masters Swimming Canada. But after one finalswim on Saturday, he plans on saying goodbye to the sport.

"I'msad,but in a way I'm glad because the pressure is off," said Schulhof.

Over the past few years, he says age has caught up with him and has made it more difficult to swim.

"My breathingisn'tgreat at this stage, so Iam limited in the amount I can swim continuously.Iusually swim two to threelengths andthat'sit," said Schulhof.

He wasn't even planning on swimming this last time, but his wife of almost 70 years insisted.

"Probably to keep me in good shape," he said with a laugh.

Schulhofis a life-longswimmer and competed during his university days in Ireland, winning several medals and awards. Swimming also introduced him to his wife who was a competitive swimmer herself.

"She was with friends and I was with friends and we just met and got interested in eachotherIguessand it took four years and I marriedher," he said.

But then life got in the way, and he took an extended break of more than five decades from the sport.

Schulhofdidn't compete again until 1999,by which time the family had long since moved to Canada. He picked it up after hearing about a swim meet near his home in West Vancouver.

"Isaw these people,they were fairlyold and I thought, 'well Ican do that,'" he said.

The North Shore Masters Swim Club member has racked up dozens ofCanadian records. His go-to strokes arethe backstrokeand breaststroke, but lately, he says, it hasn't been a level playing field.

"You can't call this competing anymore because there is no one the same age. Iautomatically come first in my age group," he said.

Schulhof, who says his age still comes as a shock to him, encourages young people to get into swimming.

"It's a great exercise and you meet some wonderful people, I've met some wonderful people," he said.