{"id":426245,"date":"2020-04-08T14:04:42","date_gmt":"2020-04-08T21:04:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=426245"},"modified":"2020-04-09T00:55:13","modified_gmt":"2020-04-09T07:55:13","slug":"cecilia-mccloskey-reflects-on-18-masters-records-to-start-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/cecilia-mccloskey-reflects-on-18-masters-records-to-start-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Swim Fort Lauderdale’s Cecilia McCloskey Reflects on 18 Masters Records to Start 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cecilia McCloskey<\/strong> was hoping to be on top of the world in swimming.<\/p>\n

An Olympic trials qualifier in 1964 and 1968, she was hoping to make the Olympics and perform at the top of her sport.<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t quite happen as she hoped. McCloskey, formerly Dougherty, missed the Olympic team by one spot in 1968.<\/p>\n

But more than 50 years later, she is still one of the world\u2019s elite swimmers.<\/p>\n

McCloskey broke 18 national age-group records and seven Masters World Records this year, in a span of less than two months in the 70-74 age group.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did have a good start. I was preparing for turning 70 when I could hit the ground running. When I was 69, I started looking at what meets to go to and see if I could try and do this,\u201d Cecilia McCloskey told Swimming World<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Her first Olympic trials were in 1964, when she was just 14, where she swam the 100 and 200 backstroke events. Four years laster at the 1968 Trials, she finished fourth in the 200 backstroke and fifth in the 100 backstroke, just one spot away from a spot on the team in Mexico City.<\/p>\n

\u201cI finished fourth when they took three,\u201d she said. \u201cI had made the PanAmerican Games that year and what is now the World University Games the year before.\u201d<\/p>\n

The year was extremely difficult for McCloskey and her family. A year before the 1968 trials, McCloskey\u2019s mother died, leaving her father to care for 10 children. Cecilia was the third-oldest of the bunch and then barely missed the Olympics.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a bad go for my family,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Cecilia McCloskey moved to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean after that, competed in a couple of open water events, then stopped swimming for about 20 years. When she was in her 40s, she got into Masters swimming for a bit, setting a few age-group records, before quitting to enjoy her own children\u2019s swimming careers.<\/p>\n

She always stayed in shape, whether that be from swimming, running, boxing or lifting weights.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was 64 (2014), I came back into swimming. I went to the nationals in Maryland to be on a relay. I swam three events because I was allowed to since I was a relay swimmer. I won the 50 back in my first meet back. I was very surprised,\u201d she said. \u201cMy brother asked me to do relays with his team, the Colonials from Philadelphia. Then we went to Croatia and did the swim trek, and it blossomed from there. I turned 65 and broke a lot of records right off the bat. Then I broke the world records in the long course during the summer.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Along the way, she was named one of Swimming World<\/em>\u2019s Top 12 Masters Swimmers of the Year<\/a> in 2015. She is on her way to another honor after dominating the first part of 2020, bringing her career world record total to 21.<\/p>\n

The record assault began on Jan. 18, in San Francisco. McCloskey broke the USMS records in the 400 free, 800 free and 1500 free, with the 800 free and 1500 free also being Masters World Records in SCM.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe got there the night before. I had never gone to a meet that late before. I knew the time I had to beat,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Just a few weeks later, she participated in the 28th Annual Valentines SCY meet in Clearwater, Florida, and set 70-74 age group records in the 50, 100 and 200 backstrokes as well as the 50 fly, 100, 200 and 400 IM and the 500 free.<\/p>\n

She wasn\u2019t finished.<\/p>\n

Three weeks later, McCloskey participated in the 2020 Albatross SCM Open in Bethesda, Maryland. She had five swims in the meet and broke five masters world records.<\/p>\n

And the meet was just one day – Feb. 29. Here is a breakdown of her productive day:<\/p>\n