It was almost exactly a year ago this time that Syla Swords joined her younger sister (Savannah), long-time European pro Samantha Cooper, a number of friends and one-time teammates as well as the Laurentian Voyageurs' women for a Sunday morning workout at the Ben Avery Gym.

Part of a rapidly shrinking group of elite athletes that were still in the mix for a spot on the Team Canada roster that would compete at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Swords was most looking forward to her freshman season with the Michigan Wolverines.

A lot has happened, to say the least, in the past twelve months for the 19 year old who was born in France but proudly lists Sudbury as her home town, moving to northern Ontario at the age of two.

“It’s really been a whirlwind,” said Swords, who made history last August by becoming the youngest woman ever to represent this country in basketball at the Olympics – and then just for good measure, who went on to enjoy an outstanding debut to her NCAA career, culminating with Freshman All-American honours.

“Even now, almost a year after the Olympics, I’m not sure that I have fully processed that whole experience, the magnitude of what that means,” she said.

That can happen when mere weeks later, Swords was stepping on to the campus in Ann Arbour (Michigan), trying to get “back to being just a normal kid who plays sports”, as she described it.

There is much to keep Swords grounded as she travels a road very few in these parts have experienced. It certainly doesn’t hurt that her father (Shawn) also donned the maple leaf on his jersey at the Olympics (2000 – Sydney, Australia).

But she is equally as quick to point to the standard acclimatization that countless older teens will encounter in their first year of university. “I just really loved where I was at with Michigan,” said Swords. “My teammates are amazing, the staff was amazing. The program I am in (Business School) is really hard – but I love being challenged.”

“I like to be busy and it’s kept me busy, for sure.”

Some might suggest a simple approach would work best – simply put one foot ahead of the other – and keep doing so on a daily basis. This may not have been an exact quote from Swords, but the implications remain the same.

“I don’t think my expectations for myself to grow as a basketball player are ever going to lessen,” she explained. “I’m always going to chase more. I always wanted to be an Olympian – but I certainly don’t feel fulfilled yet.”

Even at these heights, refinement is possible. Probable, even, in the case of Miss Swords.

“I would like to think I have grown a lot mentally and basketball IQ wise,” she said. “Spending time with people who have been pros almost as long as I’ve been alive; it’s been fun picking their brain, every chance I get, learning what gets them through the hard days.”

“I’ve learned that there are going to be hard days when you play basketball pretty much 365 days a year.”

Not that Syla Swords is complaining. Not by a long shot.

This summer, the hope is that she will team will Savannah to help lead Canada into the 2025 FIBA Under-19 Women’s Basketball World Cup in the Czech Republic (July 12th – July 20th).

In what appears to be a first, Canada had more female talent competing in the women’s edition of March Madness than the men – a fact that leaves Swords exhilarated about what lies ahead.

“It’s a really exciting time for Canadian basketball,” she said. “Our freshman class this year was incredible. And it’s fun for me because these are just people I grew up playing against. Seeing what they did at a high level in the NCAA is really exciting. There’s so many names in the tournament, multiple Canadians getting drafted in the WNBA draft.”

Not to mention the whole Caitlin Clark impact.

“We’re so lucky to be growing up in the time that we are,” said Swords. “Women’s basketball is on the rise. There are so many eyes on us as we hopefully are inspiring young girls to get in the game.”

The truth is that few role models could be better than the humble Michigan sensation – and that is something that Syla Swords would have found inconceivable just one year ago.