Emma Wright: A force in the pool from Lindsay returns to the Olympics

Sports Advocate

By Amanda Tayles

Emma Wright, the youngest of four, was a student at Alexandra Public School when she became a product of circumstance. Her older siblings were active in water polo and had graduated from the local Lindsay club to a competitive team in Toronto. Being too young to stay home alone, Emma was dragged along to the pool on a nightly basis before being thrown in “kicking and screaming,” according to her mother, Wendy Wright. Wendy figured Emma was there, so may as well join in. Despite the initial resistance, Emma proved to be a force from the start, and was soon playing on teams with players four and five years her senior. Playing to their level only strengthened her skills and competitiveness, but Emma acknowledges “it took a few years for me to enjoy it fully, until I recognized my own strength and role in the team.” Wendy thinks gathering a few bits of hardware, by winning medals, helped too.

Finding enjoyment in the sport fuelled the dedication it takes to compete at high levels.  Every night after school the family loaded into the car to commute to their club in the city, practicing in the pool between two to four hours, before heading back home to Lindsay. On weekends, Emma would stay with a teammate in Toronto to practice multiple times a day. This went on for over seven years. Both mother and daughter acknowledge the sacrifices made, “eating, sleeping and doing homework in between practices – a lot of things given up and a lot of things gained,” Wendy says.

After being selected to represent Canada on the junior team for world championships in Italy, she made the senior club in 2013 at just 16 years old. She was the youngest player on the team by more than four years.  Summers were spent training in Montreal, where she resided after graduating from LCVI, but the team fell just one goal short of qualifying for the 2016 Olympics.

Emma continued to pursue her studies with a full scholarship at University of California, Berkeley. Reaching the Olympics remained the goal and she returned home to train after graduation, only to have COVID throw a wrench in everyone’s plans. The inability to train and the subsequent postponement of the 2020 Olympics was devastating, but she wasn’t alone as Emma wasn’t the only Wright in the pool. Her closest sibling, Claire, who joined water polo at 16 after transitioning from swimming, was on the Canadian team with her and they lived together in Montreal, training prior to and following their studies in the U.S. Together they managed their disappointment of the delayed Olympics, but they also supported one another as they got back into shape and wore the leaf to represent Canada in the pool in Tokyo in 2021. “It just made the experience so much better. It was special to have Claire there because no one could have family travel with them,” Emma recalls.  It had been 16 years since Canada had qualified for water polo at the Olympics; the team finished the games placing 7th.

Emma has her sights set higher for the team this go-around as she captains the team to Paris, but this time she’ll be solo as Claire has since retired. Training started last September, when the team came together to get ready for the PanAm games in October, then Worlds in February where they secured their spot to the Olympics. Training is a full-time job, as Emma spends up to eight hours a day between time in the pool, weight training and analyzing video. Even on visits home, Emma maintains her regimen and heads back to where it all began – the Lindsay Recreation Centre – where she is known to take over the swim lanes.

Her dedication is evident, but she is quick to recognize what it took on her mom’s part from the beginning. “For sure I wouldn’t be where I am today without my mom. I’m very thankful she saw that we loved it and she dedicated her time to it.” It paid off. All three Wright girls received athletic scholarships. And though Wendy admits she will give herself the odd pat on the back for doing a good job supporting their dreams, she stresses each of the girl’s success is their own. “It shows their mental strength; I give them full credit for doing it.”