A year-around swim club that was formerly known as the City of Shreveport Swim Team and later became the YMCA’s Bolts is making a comeback. The club has moved back to its original location, the Southside Swim Club, following the departure of longtime swimming coach John Janszen. The Southside Swim Club has merged with Ruston’s Bulldog Aquatics and will now operate as a satellite of the Ruston team, which is renowned in Louisiana for its swimming excellence.

Southside manager Tara Hardin expressed her excitement about the return of year-around swimming at the Southside Swim Club. The club has already welcomed 33 children from the YMCA, and more are expected to join. The coaching staff at Southside includes Mandy Smith, the daughter of the former COSST coach Butch Jordan, as well as Billy Cloute and Tyler Lloyd.

Lloyd, one of the coaches, expressed his enthusiasm about coaching at Southside and described it as a wonderful home for their team. He also mentioned the club’s rich swimming history and the opportunity it offers to bring in new members.

The club began its workouts earlier this month, primarily catering to swimmers between the ages of 5 and 14. This merger is particularly exciting because Southside tends to have younger swimmers, while Ruston’s team is composed of mostly older swimmers. The collaboration between the two clubs allows for a diverse range of ages and skill levels to come together and train under the guidance of experienced coaches.

For more information about the club, please contact Tara Hardin.