Aqualicious Makes a Splash on the Sunshine Coast
Aqualicious has recently expanded its presence to the Sunshine Coast, where it has been warmly embraced by the local LGBTIQ+ community and now boasts over 20 local members.
Aqualicious has been part of the Masters Swimming Queensland community for over 20 years, providing a diverse and inclusive environment for Brisbane’s LGBTIQ+ swimmers and their friends, with training sessions run throughout the week at Centenary Pool in Spring Hill.
However, Aqualicious’ reach grew in August when an additional branch was launched on the Sunshine Coast. This new branch has generated much enthusiasm within the local LGBTIQ+ swimming community and has attracted numerous new members including those who were not regular swimmers or had not engaged in swimming for many years.
David Loader, Aqualicious Sunshine Coast co-ordinator and coach, expressed optimism about the future growth of the Sunshine Coast branch. “We’ve seen so much interest from the local LGBTIQ+ community since we started our training sessions, and we seem to be gaining increased momentum as the word spreads,” he said.
Aqualicious leaned heavily into social media to promote their new squad to the local community, regularly posting updates on Facebook and Instagram, and sharing information to local LGBTIQ+ Facebook groups.
David added, “We’re just getting started and have so much planned for 2025! This includes the training of additional coaches, increased training sessions throughout the week, some awesome social events for our members, and continuing to reach out to the local LGBTIQ+ community, especially the groups that we’ve not made a lot of inroads into yet.”
The newly formed squad meets at the UniSC Aquatic Centre in Sippy Downs, with training sessions provided on Wednesday evenings and Sunday mornings. The squad focuses not only on swimming but also on fostering a sense of community through various social activities such as brunch following Sunday morning training sessions, and the club also organises a squad dinner once a month.
The competitive spirit of the Sunshine Coast members has already been showcased, with eight of them joining their fellow club members from Brisbane at the recent Hervey Bay meet. This participation not only demonstrated their commitment to the sport but also highlighted the club’s encouragement of healthy competition and personal growth.
This successful launch truly captures the essence of what makes Masters Swimming special: fitness, friendship, and fun. The training sessions are great for staying fit, while the social activities help build friendships. The club’s welcoming and lively atmosphere ensures everyone has a great time. Aqualicious is quickly becoming a key part of the local LGBTIQ+ community on the Sunshine Coast, and swimmers in the area can look forward to many more exciting developments from this group in 2025!
