Competitive Swimmer at North Star Academy
by Kaylen Lane
Swimming Lane Markers Lap Pool by ChuckSchugPhotography from Getty Images Signature
Created in Canva
Olivia Van Vreede, a tenth grader at North Star Academy, is a competitive swimmer for the Victor Swim Club in New York.
She first joined a swim team when she was young, and still swims. “I joined a swim team when I was eight, and really learned how to actually swim there,” says Olivia. “My mom actually decided to have me join a swim team … for swim lessons, and I fell in love with the sport.”
She practices 18 hours a week, plus running and strength work outside of swimming. “Physically the sport can be very hard, because it is tiring … You are constantly training, and practices can be long.” Olivia says swimming is exceptionally challenging, because it is a mental sport. “You have to battle negativity and nerves that hold you back. Because you are always underwater and alone with your thoughts, it is easy for negativity to affect you ….”
Olivia’s ultimate goal is to swim for a Division 1 college team. To have this opportunity, she is working towards qualifying for two meets. “I am close to the qualifiers in a few events for one meet, and I am a few seconds off of the qualifiers in a few events for another meet,” says Olivia.
In order to compete in championships or high-level meets, you need ample rest. Olivia tries to get seven to eight hours of sleep every night, but before big meets her goal is to get eight to nine hours of sleep. This is very hard since she usually has preliminary races as early as 6 a.m. and meets can last as late as 8:30 p.m. For big meets her coaches usually give her more time to recover during practice so that she can swim faster for the meet.
“You aren’t allowed to do anything physically or mentally tiring before the meet. I usually avoid fast food and junk food prior to meets and I try to limit any unhealthy food in general to help with my training as well,” states Olivia.
Olivia loves the team environment and being with her friends at the swim meets. Her favorite part of swim meets is the adrenaline during a race. Olivia prefers the backstroke, but she is equally fast at the backstroke, freestyle, and butterfly stroke. She would also rather swim in a pool which is what she is used to.
In competitive swimming, there are four different styles of swimming: backstroke, front stroke, butterfly stroke, and freestyle. For the last 30-40 years, they have only been improved slightly but are still relatively the same. Swimming season is usually in autumn and winter, but in some cases, they are longer or shorter.
Kay Lane is a journalist for The Navigator. She currently resides in the Middle East with her family. Kay is in the seventh grade, and this is her first year at NSA. Her hobbies are archery, painting, and she plays soccer. She also loves Star Wars.