 Gurr started swimming at the newly built Arbutus Club in Vancouver in 1965, and later joined the Canadian Dolphin Swim Club, where her idol Elaine Tanner swam and was coached by Howard Firby.She qualified for her first Senior Nationals at age 12, placing 12th in one event.At the age of 13 she narrowly missed a berth on the 1968 Olympic team by placing 3rd in the 200-metre backstroke, at the Olympic Trials, and missing the qualifying time by only 3 tenths of a second.