Coaches

Lauren Siarkowski: Head Coach 

Lauren is returning for her tenth season with the Calgary Swordfish. As incoming Head Coach, Lauren is excited to uphold the Swordfish culture of commitment to community and dedication to excellence. She has been an extremely valuable part of our success and a critical piece of the coaching team for many years.

Lauren has been coaching in Calgary for thirteen years. She brings with her an expertise and understanding of the fundamentals of competitive swimming and has centered her career around developing fundamentals programs in the teams she has worked with. She concentrates on technical and holistic growth of swimmers as both athletes and individuals. Her focus will be to bring together the competitive success of winning with our philosophy of fun to ensure our swimmers enjoy the experience that Swordfish is notorious for.

In addition to coaching with the Calgary Swordfish, Lauren is currently coaching her fourth season with Calgary Patriots, a winter based swim club in the age group program. Prior to this, she coached developmental swimming with the University of Calgary Swim Club from 2010-2018 where she worked with many swimmers and coaches to lead one arm of the team’s developmental program.

Outside of the pool, Lauren holds a BA in Communications and Media Studies and has experience in administration and organization. She enjoys event planning and has a passion for the arts.

Everett Yee

Coming soon

Luke Bester

I am returning to the swordfish for what will be my 15th year involved with the organization. In my 13 years as a swimmer, My biggest honour as a swimmer was to be named to the ASSA all star team during the 2017 swim season. While I was swimming, I was fortunate to have the ability to win races and awards, but the most important thing I gained through my experience was life long friendships.

I have always had a passion for coaching which began when I coached my little brothers basketball team while I was in high school and university. Sports were a huge part of my childhood, and I love getting to help the next generation of athletes find their passion for it as well. Outside of the pool I am a teacher and currently teach junior high math and science!

Brent Bester

A Calgary native, Brent has coached or been involved in swimming for his entire life. Brent swam for more 9 years with the Calgary Swordfish Summer Swim team before rejoining the team years later on the coaching staff in 2016.

Previously Brent was the Head Coach of the University of Alberta Masters Swim Club which he started up himself in 2016 and ran for three seasons, and has coached age-group year round swimmers with the Calgary Patriots since 2019. Brent is still a Masters swimmer to this day and enjoys a love for the sport as an athlete as well as a coach. Outside of the pool Brent is happily married to his wife Megan of almost nine years, has two young children, and works as a structural engineer. 

Cindy Li

Cindy has been passionate about swimming for over a decade and has competed at both regional and provincial levels. The majority of her time as a swimmer was with the Calgary Swordfish, but she has also swam with the Calgary Patriots. She has a passion for coaching and has coached rhythmic gymnastics in the past. Working with the Calgary Swordfish for the first time is an exciting opportunity for Cindy to share her knowledge and passion for swimming with a new group of swimmers.

Outside of swimming, Cindy will be graduating high school this June.

Cindy is very excited to coach Gold group this season!

Serena Zhang

Swimming with Swordfish since elementary school, I have been apart of this wonderful community for the past ten years. I am a grade 12 student at Sir Winston Churchill High School and will be graduating soon. I am so happy to say that this is my first season coaching for the team! I have always wished to become a coach for Swordfish and inspire others, just like all my coaches did for me.

No words can describe how grateful I am for this opportunity to work with Swordfish. As a new coach, I hope to bring my most authentic self to the table and ensure that everyone feels welcomed and ready for a challenge everyday.

On my off time, I enjoy spending time with my friends, and discovering new things. I have a pet bearded dragon named Spiky and a hermit crab named Hermy!

Can’t wait for the season to start!

Elsie Whitney

 

Shana Fu

 

I have been at the pool for as long as I can remember, having swam competitively and played water polo since I was nine! I started swimming with Swordfish in 2015 and am now a coach since the last 2024 season. Having developed a passion for soaking in a lane pool, outside of coaching, I am continuously involved with teaching swimming year-round as a Swim Instructor for the City of Calgary. 

Swimming—and Swordfish—has been a big part of my life, bringing me lifelong friendships and a sport with many achievements that I could not find elsewhere. I am super excited to continue to share my passion for swimming with Swordfish this summer!

Outside of swimming, I like bouldering, baking, and playing with my two cats, Tiger and Bean. I am also pursuing a degree in neuroscience at the University of Calgary.

I am looking forward to this fun season!