I’ve been swimming since I can remember. Seriously, my mom put me in water babies at 18 months, and I haven’t stopped since. I fell in love with the water at an early age, and then I was thrown into the actual sport of swimming at the age of seven. Like any other seven-year-old, I didn’t take it too seriously. I was there for the fun and the friends, spending more time underwater than I spent listening to my coach.
Then I turned nine, and everything changed; I became dedicated, determined, and ready to completely devote myself to the sport. I would be lying if I said I loved every minute of every practice, but I did it. I swam on the same club team from the age of seven to the age of 18, which is when I decided to commit to the Florida Institute of Technology and continue my swimming career for another four years.
As an upcoming senior in college, I can’t believe that it’s almost over. I never thought the day would come where I only have one more season. Up until this point, there was always next season, next year, next conference championships. I remember being sad about my time on my YMCA team coming to an end, but it wasn’t a big deal; I had four more years of swimming in the Sunshine State.
But this is it. The final chapter of my swimming career. I’ve read countless articles about freshman, sophomore, and senior years of college ending, but never junior year, so here are a few things that I want all swimmers who are entering their final season to remember:
- Cherish your teammates. They were your first 50 friends at a college where you knew nobody, and they accepted you from the beginning. I guarantee you that they will be the friends you keep in touch with for the rest of your life, even the ones from different countries.
- Go to team outings and events, even if you don’t want to. This time next year, you won’t have a team to have bonfires and cookouts with. There will come a day where you wish you could’ve gone to that girls’ team breakfast that you were invited to.
- Appreciate your coaches. You may not think they make sense all the time or that they’re out to get you, but they sacrifice more than you know. If anyone in this world cares about swimming and the wellbeing of the team, it is college coaches.
- Don’t take your races too seriously; sure, it’s important to care about how you swim and scoring points for your team, but it’s also important to have fun, laugh, and make memories. The past three years have given me enough moments and memories to last me a lifetime. Out of all those memories, I can count on one hand the memories that involve a race.
- Talk to the freshmen and sophomores. They look up to you more than you know, and your actions, words, and kindness all have a impact on them. Set a good example.
- On that note, talk to the recruits. You’ve been here for three years; you know the nuts and bolts of this team. Let them know what the team is really about. You could be the reason they choose the same team and school that you did.
- Remember that swimming is the reason you are here today. Swimming has molded you into the person you are and has taken you places and introduced you to people you would have never met if it wasn’t for swimming.
- Remember why you started swimming and why you’re still doing it. You’ve made it this far, so something must be keeping you here.
- Be grateful, always. Swimming is, hands down, one of the best things that has ever happened to me, and continuing to swim in college was the best decision I’ve ever made. I truly hope that your journey has been as amazing as mine.
Even though we all have one more season left, it will go by in the blink of an eye. Appreciate and enjoy every moment with your teammates and coaches because, this time next year, it’ll all be over, and we’ll make the transition from swimmer to swammer. We might be excited at first, but we’ll miss it. We’ll miss this insane sport that has taken over our lives, destroyed our hair, and permanently dried out our skin, but who knows, maybe we’ll make a comeback. Until then, enjoy the season one last time.
Rachel Barczyk, a native of Connellsville, Pennsylvania, is on the varsity swim team at Florida Institute of Technology, where she is studying Global Management and Finance. She is entering the 15th and final season of her swimming career.
Great article Rachel!