Imagine lacing up the blades to play hockey with Hayley Wickenheiser.
Think about what what it would be like to share the soccer field with Christine Sinclair or play a game of tennis with Eugenie Bouchard.
Fourteen-year-old Prince George Barracudas Swim Club breaststroke specialist Hannah Esopenko didn't have to let her imagination run wild three weekends ago at the Pan Am Games Canadian team trials in Toronto. She just had to glance over her own shoulders to see she was racing some the best swimmers in the world.
One of them was Martha McCabe of Toronto, who finished fifth in the 200m breaststroke at the London Olympics in 2012. Over on the men's side of the pool was Ryan Cochrane of Victoria, a two-time Olympic medalist in freestyle.
"That was amazing, it was such a good experience and it's unbelievable to know I'm almost at that level, I'm getting there," said Esopenko. "I was really focused going into that meet and my goal was to do really good breaststrokes so I could qualify for stuff this summer.
"The nerves definitely got to me in finals for the 200 breaststroke. I wasn't used to getting ready in a ready room and being surrounded by Olympians and people who are making world championships. It was a totally new experience for me."
At 14, Esopenko was the youngest swimmer in the breaststroke events at the trials but made finals in the 100m and 200m distances.
"The 100 breaststroke was a good race for me," said Esopenko. "I took off a second and little bit (off her personal best time) and I wasn't expected to make finals. Finals was like a learning experience I have to get used to. They've all done it hundreds of times before so it wasn't a big deal to them and they know how to get ready in the ready rooms.
"You see how focused they are. They swim good in the morning and then at night, even if they're sick or tired they know how to pull out a best time that was better than their time in the morning. That's something I really need to work on."
Esopenko didn't swim any breaststroke races this past weekend at the Barracudas' Medical Moose Meet at the Aquatic Centre. Instead, she used the three-day meet to focus on her backstroke and show her strength in the individual medley races.
Esopenko, a Grade 9 student at College Heights secondary school, is the top-ranked 15-and-under swimmer in Canada in the 100m and 200m breaststroke and ranks second in the nation in the 50m breast and 200 individual medley. Her performances in Toronto earned her spot on the B.C. team for the Western Canada Games in Fort McMurray in August. She just missed qualifying for the junior (under-17) world championships in Singapore.
"She went 2:35 in the 100 breaststroke and she needed to go 2:32 for world championships, but she's only 14," said Barracudas head coach Jerzy Partyka. "For a 14-year-old kid, what she's done is a very good achievement. She also made strong improvements this year in short course."
Now in her seventh year of competitive swimming, Esopenko has been breaking club records this season, erasing marks held by the likes of Katie Mann (200 IM), Haley Black (breaststroke) and Danica Ludlow (400 IM). That puts Esopenko in some elite company, knowing those three former 'Cudas have gone on to success in university swim programs -- Mann at New Hampshire, Black at Western Kentucky and Ludlow at UVic.
"They've done the same training as I'm doing now with the same coach (Partyka) and the same pool and we're all from Prince George, so it just goes to show you don't have to be in a big city with big facilities," said Esopenko.
"I broke Haley's 200 IM record and we're friends so we've talked about it. She's such a great swimmer so it's good to know I'm on the same track as her. Breaking her records and stuff is awesome. "
Esopenko says she inherited her will to succeed from her parents, Kelly and Tom. Her mom isn't the athletic type but her dad is a former senior A lacrosse player.
"I'm a really competitive person and I want to be as good as I possible can, and I push myself in practice," she said. "My dad and I are both the same, very competitive, we want to win. My mom has that same drive and attitude too."
Esopenko has a busy calendar ahead of her with the Mel Zajac Canada Cup meet in Vancouver, May 21-23; B.C. long course championships in Victoria, July 2-5; age group nationals in Montreal, July 15-20; and senior nationals in Montreal, July 22-26.
