She was an Olympic swimmer for Great Britain. Now she's teaching at Ocala's FAST complex

Doug Engle, Ocala Star-Banner
·4 min read

Fifteen years ago, FAST Aquatics Program Director Gemma (Spofforth) Fleming was swimming the backstroke instead of teaching it, in hopes of winning a gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Swimming for Great Britain, she missed out on the bronze medal by 0.04 of a second in the 100m backstroke, placing fourth.

Four years later she was competing again in the 2012 London Olympics. This time she came in fifth place in the 100m backstroke.

Now Fleming is working for FAST, which is short for Florida Aquatics Swimming & Training, helping to teach youngsters how to swim.

FAST Aquatics Program Director Gemma Fleming works with student Kase Schroeder, 5, on July 24 at FAST in Ocala.
FAST Aquatics Program Director Gemma Fleming works with student Kase Schroeder, 5, on July 24 at FAST in Ocala.

Students start out at the bronze level, work their way to silver, gold and platinum, and then to the Stroke Academy at FAST.

"So it's a combination of being a former Olympian and school counselor (that helps me teach,)" Fleming said during a recent interview. "For me it's all about the whole child. So we have kids that start out in bronze and have an insane amount of fear. So when they get in the water they're terrified about putting their face under water or terrified of drowning. So it's concurring that fear with the idea of becoming an excellent swimmer or becoming part of a team."

Before the Olympics, Fleming accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida, where she swam from 2007 to 2010. During her four seasons she won seven NCAA national championships, including three titles in the 100-yard backstroke (2008, 2009, 2010), three in the 200-yard backstroke (2007, 2008, 2009), and one in the 200-yard freestyle relay (2010).

She was also a key contributor to the Gators winning the NCAA national team championship in 2010. She was inducted into the UF Athletic Hall of Fame in 2020.

FAST Aquatics Program Director Gemma Fleming gives some pointers on the freestyle stroke to Mackenzie Speed, 11, before she swam to the wall during swim lesson on July 24 at FAST in Ocala.
FAST Aquatics Program Director Gemma Fleming gives some pointers on the freestyle stroke to Mackenzie Speed, 11, before she swam to the wall during swim lesson on July 24 at FAST in Ocala.

Along with her accomplishments in the Olympics and college, she won a number of world championships in the backstroke.

Current focus: career and family

Now married and a mother of twins, a boy and girl, Fleming's focus is on career and family. She said her husband likes to swim but was not a swimmer. Her 3-year-olds are learning to swim.

A long term goal is to create a diving, synchro and water polo team at FAST.

Fleming has lived in Marion County since 2016. Before taking the job at FAST, she worked as a school counselor for eight years with low-income children in both Williston and Marion County.

Fleming graduated in her May with her doctorate in education, working with teachers on how they grade second language learners in comprehension.

She has used her data collecting skills and applied them in her swim instruction. Every time a child completes a swim or completes a lesson, she sees what she's gaining from the data to make that next lesson better for her student.

"Training is something we can do better. All children learn differently and all children need different ways to learn, so my elementary school counseling background comes in very well," Fleming said.

"Gemma is awesome. She really takes the time to get to know the children individually and she pushes each one. She finds their weak spots and works them through it and she gives the kids the confidence in the water. She's great with them. Who'd ever have guessed that we would have (an Olympic swimmer) in Ocala?" Kaedee Schroeder said Monday as her son was being taught by Fleming.

Local swimming at FAST: Photos from the Florida Senior Championships

When asked if she was a scout for the UF swim team, Fleming just laughed. "I'm not a scout, but I know people who are scouts. I stay in touch with them," she said.

"If I'm on deck and I see a someone on the team from across the way and they're doing something (wrong) especially with the backstroke, I'll go over and give them a little feedback and tell them they could do better. It's not till later that one of the coaches may tell them that I'm a former world record holder, then they're like, 'Oh, so the coach has been telling this to me for years. but now it comes from a world record holder,' " she said a chuckle.

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Gemma (Spofforth) Fleming uses her Olympic swim experience to help students