Alia Atkinson’s beginning would never have been the clue that she would one day become one of the greatest black female swimmers. There was no swimming pool in her yard, her parents were not competitive swimmers or swimming coaches, and there wasn’t much representation of black swimmers for her to emulate.
Yet this highly motivated and determined swimming sensation from Roehampton, St James, Jamaica, has not only changed the world of swimming, but she has also left a legacy and tangible representation for black and young people. An example to follow and an inspiration to believe they can swim just as well or better.
After 30 years of swimming Alia Atkinson retired in December last year, sharing the news on her Instagram page to her thousands of followers.
Her stellar performance has given her four world records, seven national records, and 31 medals, including 15 gold, ten silver, and six bronze. She is a five-time Olympian, Jamaican sportswoman of the year, and Swammy awardee as the Central American & Caribbean Female Athlete of the year six times. Alia was inducted into the Texas A&M Hall of Fame in 2018 and, in 2021, was included in SwimSwam’s top 100 women. She has also received Jamaica’s fifth highest national honor, the Order of Distinction, Rank of Commander. In November 2021, the University of the West Indies conferred on her an honorary Doctor of Laws designation. But perhaps her most significant legacy is being the first black woman to win a world title in swimming and the impact of that milestone on her race and young people in general.
Alia Atkinson Now FINA Committee Chair
On July 1, FINA, the governing body for world aquatic events, announced its Athletes’ Committee. The group, which has 30 members, will be chaired by Alia. As chair of the committee, she also sits on the FINA board as an ex officio member. The position has been a goal of Alia as she seeks to support programs that advance swimming in countries with limited resources.
CNW sat down with Alia recently to reflect on her 30 years journey in the swimming pool and look at the road ahead. Our meeting occurred at the South Florida Aquatic Club, where Alia practiced and competed. This time there was no pressure of competition or training. Alia was very relaxed, smiling and laughing loudly during the interview at times.
CNW: Your SwimSwam bio states: “To place Jamaica on the world map of swimming; to agitate for the improvement of the infrastructural support for swimming in Jamaica so as to be able to take it to the next level.” Why is this an important goal?
ALIA: For the most part, I think more interest has been put into swimming these past couple of years, but we need more. The intent is to help create some sort of developmental program that will be self-sustaining and help cycle in more swimmers, more learn-to-swim programs and have a bigger pool of swimmers to potentially continue after. But I also wanted to convey that swimming is not just a sport but a life skill. So that means addressing it as a water safety, including awareness and education for Jamaica and the Caribbean. It is taking myself out of the sport as Alia as an athlete and installing Alia as a person who wants to do something not just for swimming but for humankind.
CNW: What would you consider your most outstanding achievement?
ALIA: I am not sure. Depending on who I talk to. Whether it’s my coach, my parents, or somebody else, there is always a different answer. For me, It’s perseverance. It has been a long time, and there have been a lot of times I wanted to quit, but I stuck to it, knowing what my goal was. I wanted to make sure I gave it my best. So, when I look back at competing from age 8 to 33, I preserved to the end. I think that is my greatest achievement.
CNW: And your most significant setback?
ALIA: There have been many. Perseverance only comes with setbacks. When you have a setback, you definitely have to sit back and ask what your goal is, what you want to accomplish, how you will achieve it, and ignite that passion to do it. I cannot name one; I have had many.
CNW: What has been the most exciting part of your journey?
ALIA: Every decade I had some excitement. In my teenage years, it was going to my first Olympics and going to college to get into the NCAA stage. In my 20s, it was getting onto the international stage and traveling worldwide, seeing where I rank, and being competitive. In my 30s, it was not just looking at my accolades and where I reached in swimming but all the friends I made. I was an introvert growing up, so looking back and saying wow, look at all the friends I made all over the world. I have shown myself, and people are attracted to my optimism, positivity, Jamaican culture, and everything I have done in the last couple of years; it is a fantastic feeling.
CNW: Are you an extrovert now?
ALIA: (Laughing out loud) No, extrovert when I have to be.
CNW: Any regrets along the way?
ALIA: I think my regrets are short-term. There are things I should have done, but I did not. These include financial stuff, and not chasing the wrong things would be the main ones. I don’t regret staying in the sport for so long. I pushed through to a fifth Olympics. It would have been a regret not competing in the International Swimming Federation (ISF) and getting that feeling. I have been to the World Cup. I can’t say I have any strong regrets.
CNW: What would you change if you were to take this path again?
ALIA: Personally for me, I wish when I was younger, I had told myself to relax. You know those times that you had a bad race? It would be how to let things go. So, when I had the setbacks, those challenging moments, it would have been good to just learn from them and then let go. I think I held on to them a bit too much, and emotionally I hurt myself going into other competitions. It would have been good to learn those lessons when I was younger so that the blow would not have hurt as much when I got older on the international stage.
I think for me, a prime example would be if I swim a race and I literally gave it my all. My turn was great, my dive was great, my mental state was great, and then I realized that maybe that turn was a little bit too slow. Was it because of the race and me deciding it was the best thing to do in that split second, or do I hammer on it and say that was why I lost? Oh, if I’d just done that better, where could I be right now. It is those ifs that played into my mental state. At a young age, if you can trust yourself that that action was the best thing to do and, in the future, do more training in situations where it can become involuntary, that’s the way out of it—not harboring on the ifs and going oh, if only!
She admitted that it is hard as a competitor not to be hard on herself but pointed out that there is a fine line between fight and seriousness, confidence and passion vs. obsessiveness, and not being content.
CNW: What is most responsible for your success?
ALIA: An accumulation of everything. My coaches being able to fluctuate with me. The days when I am doing good and bad. To mentally pump me up and keep me in there. My parents for allowing me to run it until I saw it fit to end it and for supporting me financially and emotionally. My friends and family for always believing in me. It’s my team Alia.
CNW: How does Alia set and achieve goals?
ALIA: When I was younger, I was blessed to have a coach and a team that included my parents to sit and do short-term goals. As I got older, I realized that I could make 4-year plans. For example, from Olympic cycle to Olympic cycle, then break it down per year because there is always a competition. So I do one each year and then break it down into quarters. I started to do that and realized what I wanted to do in the sport. So, I began to do a lot more short-term goals, and if I did not hit the target, I knew what to adjust for the following year until the next Olympic cycle.
CNW: You have achieved so many things in life. How do you celebrate?
ALIA: ( Laughing sarcastically) “Yes, I am happy, yes I am content, yes, yes, yes, but now I look at what else is there. What’s next? What is the next goal I have to attain? Instead of in that moment, I say, Alia, enjoy this moment! I was always looking at the next… Instead of saying Alia, you just broke the World record again, yes rejoice, yes be happy, yes, enjoy the moment, I am asking about the next race. I remember the first world record. I didn’t celebrate for a whole week, which is something I should have done.
CNW: But doesn’t that attitude keep you focused?
ALIA: Yes, it does. But people should take time to enjoy the things they work and sacrifice for. Between 2016 and 2021, it was a little different though. I made sure I created memories. Not just allow memories to be created. What that means is that I got up, went to a meet, and whatever happened, I live with it, but I created some positive experiences so I can remember. And when I look back on all my world cups and even my last meet at the world championship, these are the memories I remember. Like the Singapore gardens with my mother and going on the safari desert with the Jamaican team. These are the memories of a human, not just of a swimmer. That’s what I should have done more… when I got the world record, and when I got those golds, I should have celebrated. Yes, I should have celebrated the wins but also where I am in life.
CNW: Which one of these memories is more special?
ALIA: Oooh. (smiling with a big grin). Outside of the pool or inside the pool? OK, in the pool, that has to be the first world record. Just because it was evidence that I arrived. Everything that I did, my coach did, and my parents did, finally materialized. Finally, the world knows, and it’s showing. Outside the pool – every time I get aid from a different sponsor or group, it shows that I am not alone. There are other people out there pushing me along. Every time I am on a Speedo photo shoot and having that representation not just as a black woman but as a Jamaican as well. I saw my poster in Russia (crackling laugh), and I was like, oh wow! Alright!
CNW: Who has been your greatest inspiration, and why?
ALIA: You know, my mother’s ability to see a situation, look at all the challenges, and say, alright, let’s do this! My father’s ability to be steady as a rock. Even though something may phase him internally, outside, it rarely shows. Those things have helped me throughout my career when there have been ups and downs. Let’s put it this way. Not many people have seen a black swimmer. And I can see the look of an angry black woman in some people’s eyes. To experience that situation and not give in to that stereotype, to just smile and give a positive response, does not only help me but other people’s perspectives.
My coach has been a tremendous help. Growing up in my teenage years, it was a coach and athlete type of thing. When I returned from college, it was still coach and athlete, but sometimes, he’ll be a coach; sometimes, he’s learning as an athlete. I think those blurred lines helped me later in my career when it was coach and coach and athlete and athlete. We became friends throughout that situation. He has never had somebody past 22 years continuing in the sport. It was new for him as well. So, it was learning from other coaches and coming back. Seeing what other athletes do things and coming back and sharing. I really enjoyed that partnership throughout it as well.
CNW: How do your parents deal with your success and setbacks?
ALIA: Happily, I can say that in 2016 when I tied the world record in 100 and broke the world record in the 50, my mother was in the stands for both of those. That was truly fantastic. I don’t know her initial reaction. I don’t remember looking in the crowd and seeing her, but you could see her excitement after.
I hold on to those moments because I have also seen the other side when you can see the gold, see the medal stand, and then have one of those races. And it’s not that she is disappointed. She is sad because she knows that I am disappointed. I am looking at it and saying, “ Oh God, she is disappointed.” And she would say, oh no! I’m sad because you are sad. And it is a weird cycle. Throughout these experiences, I’ve learnt to talk to my parents and coach about how I feel. They would ask if this was something I wanted to do. They have always supported me on the sidelines like that.
CNW: Which parent deals with it better?
ALIA: My father is in track and field. He grew up in track and field and football his entire life. So, he is a sports person who understands the dynamics of the ups and downs. Besides high school sports, my mother never ventured into the sports world. She is one of those in the crowds loving it but may go through the emotions differently.
They play different roles. I think mommy is more of the ‘follow me to the various meets, take care of all the ins and outs’ type. As I got older with world cups, a lot of it depended on me to be able to find the finances, find the flights, book the tickets, deal with meet entries, schedule photo shoots, etc. My mother stepped in and took over the managerial duties. I could not have continued without all of this help. For example, a flight change happens? I would get a phone call, and bam! Everything is in place.
PART 2
In part two read about Alia Atkinson’s views on her legacy, Olympic performance, why she never won an Olympic medal, her favorite world record, her assessment of swimming in Jamaica and the world, and what she would change. Read her thoughts on why it’s so hard for black people to achieve more success in swimming, her favorite places, food, and Jamaican dish. Finally readr why she thinks swimming is such a good skill to have.
