Masterful Stroke

SARASOTA — Rudy Vazmina stood at the water’s edge and refused to go any further. 

A young Vazmina looked up into his father Rudolph’s eyes and begged him to change his mind. He didn’t need to learn how to swim — at least not now. 

But Rudolph Vazmina was persistent. 

He encouraged his son to look past the pool’s broken down boiler, which made the water frigid to the touch, and find the joy and excitement that comes with learning a sport. 

Vazmina slowly made his way into the pool and began circling around in an attempt to keep warm. 

Vazmina continued to take lessons, but it wasn’t until his coach sent to him to the opposite end of the pool by himself that Vazmina realized that his father’s persistence was actually a catalyst for success. Vazmina had passed the swimming test, and he was the only one in the group to have done so. 

“I knew then that I just needed some kind of encouragement,” Vazmina says. 

Decades later, Vazmina is preparing for his 26th U.S. Masters Swimming National Championship. 

The Sarasota resident and Sarasota Sharks masters program swimmer will compete in the 2015 USMS Summer National Championship Aug. 6 through Aug. 9, in Geneva, Ohio. Vazmina is one of 52 Sharks swimmers who will be competing. 

The competition will mark Vazmina’s second national competition in a month. Most recently, Vazmina competed in the 2015 Senior National Games, which were held July 4 through July 9, in Minnesota. He won four medals in the men’s 65-69 age group. 

Vazmina won the 100-yard breaststroke in 1 minute, 14.53 seconds. He also earned a pair of silver medals in the 50 breaststroke (33.56) and the 100 butterfly (1:09.55) and a bronze medal in the 200 individual medley (2:33.21). 

This year was Vazmina’s second time competing in the National Senior Games — he competed two years ago in the men’s 60-64 age group. 

“It was a really enjoyable experience,” Vazmina says. “There were a lot of good swimmers, so the competition was very high. You get to meet up with former competitors that you swam against, but it’s not the same kind of competition as it was in college.” 

A native of Youngstown, Ohio, Vazmina didn’t start swimming competitively until he was a junior in high school. Vazmina’s high school didn’t have a swim team at the time, so Vazmina every day after school, Vazmina would walk downtown to the local YMCA for swim practice. 

Vazmina went on to swim for Ashland College where he was part of the Eagles' All-American medley relay team. Vazmina received a certificate commemorating the moment, which now hangs on a wall in his Sarasota law office. 

“I started swimming late in the game, which can be good because then you don’t get burnt out,” Vazmina says. “For me, it was all still relatively new.” 

Vazmina tried his hand at a number of other sports, including rugby, soccer, squash and distance running events, but he always found his way back to swimming. 

Vazmina stepped away from competitive swimming for a number of years after college before an injury in the late 1980s forced him back in the pool. At that point, Vazmina, who was still living in Ohio at the time, decided to join his first masters swim team. 

“Swimming is much easier on the body,” Vazmina says. “Once I got back into it, I was able to (reconnect) with friends that I competed against and make new friends. There’s a lot of camaraderie in masters swimming that you don’t get to experience in college when you’re competing.” 

In 1995, Vazmina was inducted into the Curbstone Coaches Hall of Fame, which honors athletes who have brought favorable reflection and distinction to the Youngstown area and the surrounding Mahoning Valley community. He was the first swimmer to be inducted. 

“It gave me the opportunity to express how I felt about my father and about his involvement,” Vazmina says. “It was a super experience and a lot of fun.” 

Four years later, Vazmina represented Puerto Rico at the Latin-American and Caribbean Masters Swimming Championships. Vazmina’s wife, Maricarmen, is a native of Puerto Rico and after making several visits to the country, Vazmina was invited to swim with the team. 

Vazmina moved in 2000 to Florida and joined the Sarasota Sharks masters program in 2006. Vazmina spent a year training with the Sharks before deciding to forgo the 5:30 a.m. training sessions to practice on his own. 

“I’m not much of a morning person,” Vazmina says. 

After putting in a full day at the office, Vazmina heads to Arlington Park where he trains four days a week. Vazmina swims anywhere between 3,500 and 4,000 yards each practice, completing various sets and intervals along with stroke work. 

Vazmina’s signature event in college was the butterfly, but he’s since gravitated toward the breaststroke and the individual medley. 

“Your age impacts you in butterfly more than the other strokes,” Vazmina says. “Your body goes through phases. One day you can be swimming like a champion and then not so much another day.” 

At the end of last year, Vazmina underwent spinal fusion surgery, which kept him out of the pool for three months. 

When he returned to the pool in March, Vazmina had to ease back into his routine, focusing first on freestyle and backstroke before getting back to the grind of his main events. 

“Swimming is something you can do for as long as you want,” Vazmina says. “I’ve seen people 99 years old get into the pool. It’s just amazing that they can still swim despite other infirmaries they may have. 

Contact Jen Blanco at [email protected].