MEDAL IMPRESSIONS; RUSSIAN CHAMP SHARES OLYMPIC EXPERIENCES.

Byline: Lisa Mascaro Daily News Staff Writer

Conejo Simi Aquatics swimmer Elizabeth Engler, 14, asked the Olympic star the one question that was probably running through most of her teammates' minds.

``When you were little, did you ever think you'd go to the Olympics?''

Vladimir Bure, the bronze and silver medalist who trailed champion Mark Spitz in the landmark 1972 Games, reached back into his childhood to tell the story of the dramatic victories he would organize as a boy during sports games with his playmates in the neighborhood.

``Even that time, I was thinking about it,'' he said.

Now 47, the Canadian resident passed through Simi Valley this week to meet with the local swim team at the invitation of one of the coaches, Larry Simonov, one of the Olympic swimmer's longtime friends.

From his favorite stroke - freestyle - to his favorite food - steak - the young swimmers wanted to know just about anything the Russian champion wanted to share.

``I was a lazy guy when I was young,'' Bure confided, drawing chuckles from the slouching, mostly teen-age crowd at Rancho Simi Community Park.

Nevertheless, the father of two grown sons told the swimmers he had to practice, and he offered his own homespun advice for getting through the exercises.

Daily practice, he said, was like taking a hammer and using it to pound the index finger on the other hand, drawing giggles from the students. And then he launched into a no-pain, no-gain speech that any coach could appreciate.

``It's painful. You have to go through the pain,'' he said. ``But you come back next day.''

Some wanted to know why his son, pro-hockey star Pavel Bure, didn't choose his father's sport.

The elder Bure said he taught his son to swim before the child learned to walk, but soon the younger Bure decided he wanted to play hockey.

``I was hockey fan too, like normal Russian guy. I decided, why not?''

But young Pavel was bottom on the list of 150 players, Bure said, and so he gave his son an ultimatum. ``If you like to be hockey player, I give you one month. After one month, you have to be best,'' Bure recalled telling the then-6-year-old. ``Two months later, he started playing much better. End of season, he was second-best guy in the group. One year later, he was best guy in the group.''

Bure learned coaching from his own father, a former synchronized swimming instructor who coached Bure to the Olympic medals - which led the students to wonder what it was like working with dad as coach.

``I felt father in two places: He was father and then separate, my coach,'' said Bure. He was still swimming competitively when his father died, and he said he had the opportunity to choose any new coach to take his place. ``I chose my brother,'' he said.

Ultimately, it was the students' coach, Paul Davidson, who asked what it was like during the Olympics.

``It's still like it was yesterday,'' Bure said.

He told them about entering a pool filled not just with your coach or parents as usual, but 10,000 screaming fans. ``Your legs are shaking - usually they're shaking before you start.''

Finally the big moment arrives.

``First time you win a medal, it's unbelievable,'' he said.

In all his life, he said, it remains among his proudest moments.

``I'm really lucky. I've been there, inside the Olympic Games,'' he said. ``I'm 47. My kids (are) successful athletes. But still when I get medal, it's best feeling in my life.''

And that was about all 12-year-old swimmer Daisy Fish needed to know.

``I thought it was pretty cool,'' said Daisy, who has been swimming since she was 5. ``We got to talk to an Olympic swimmer and hear what he had to say.''

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3 Photos

PHOTO (1--2--Color) Olympic silver and bronze medal-winning swimmer Vladimir Bure, above, speaks to CSA swim team members at the Rancho Simi Community Park pool, where he answered questions about his rigorous training. Nicole Slezak, 12, right, snaps a photo of the Russian athlete who participated in the 1972 Olympics.

(3--Color) Ingrid Salazar, 16, looks on as Vladimir Bure talks to coaches and swimmers about his life.

Andy Holzman/Daily News