Splashes to Success
The expression, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again, reminded me a lesson that I learned when I was growing up. As a child, my deepest fear was being in the water, and this fear had crippled me for many years until I became a member of a water polo team in high school. There was a combination of work, resilience, persistence, and discipline that involved in achieving success to overcome my fear and to become a professional swimmer. In 1960, I, eleven, went to a city theme park outside the South Vietnam Republic’s capital on a weekend with my friends. There was a crowd in a pool full of water, full of the laughs of joyful men and children. They huffed and grunted and shoved, water splashing. It’s like the Water Ragging Park came to life, and I remember in a matter of minutes I have been pulled into the deep water, and I was gasping for breath. I was convinced that the water would engulf my body, and I might die under the water. During that time, I heard a voice, “You can do it.” Then, as my body thrashed violently, my feet accidentally hit the pool floor. As a result, sprang up, and my head popped up above the surface level of the water; finally, I was
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When overcoming my fear, I tried to be equal to the swimming skills of a senior, called Joan. I would stare secretly at Joan, diving from the spring-board, butterflying a few laps. In addition, swimming was easy for her to do, but was not so for me. I liked to train myself in swimming because it kept me in shape, and it took a lot of endurance. My high school water polo team championed me as a team member. The team had ‘secret coaches’, and on game days they gave good luck treats for each other. I often visited the swimming pool and developed my skills completely splendid in different styles: butterfly, dog, and frog. Upgrading up my swimming skills is my clearest memories of growing
Imagine swimming in the big Olympic pools. All you can hear is the muffled noises of ecstatic fans cheering. All you can feel is the water urging you to keep swimming. Then you reach your hand out and feel the wall. You emerge out of the crystal blue pool water and have won! Michael Phelps and Dara Torres are two extraordinary swimmers who live their lives in the Olympic pools. Both Torres Is Tops and Michael’s Magic deal with the challenges and successes of Dara and Michael’s Olympic careers, but they do so in different ways. Let’s start our swim through the lives of these two Olympic champions.
I smiled to myself and decided that I would go join in. With that, I took a huge deep breath and jumped into the salty water. The water was cool and refreshing; I felt it slide through my hair making it sway in the water. I swam deeper and deeper into the deep blue water. Sunlight streamed through it, lighting up the water around me turning it to gold. I kicked harder and I felt my muscles surge with strength and I pushed further. My lunges began to burn for the need of oxygen, but I refused to go up. I repeatedly told myself just a little bit longer. Until I was unable to proceed anymore without more air in my lungs, I swam to the top of the water taking a huge breaths, filling my lungs with air. I could then taste the salty water as it ran down my face and dripped over my lips. Just then I thought, I will never forget this moment, this place, or the experiences I felt while visiting
This pool is my soul, and the slight, gentle waves are the beating of my heart. I stand on the deck looking down at the clear, calm water, and raise my hands above my head. I dive into the water, smooth and straight like an arrow. I enter the water without a splash, and glide underwater, feeling the cool water on my skin, and the scent of chlorine in the air. I feel powerful, immortal, and completely at peace.
A five-year-old girl who is unable to swim is drowning in a pool, where the depth is ten feet. She is incapable of communicating for help and continuously gulps copious amounts of water while kicking her legs and flinging her arms frantically. A young boy who is learning how to swim notices her desperate need for a rescue, but is too hesitant to do anything due to his fear of deep water. He then realizes that he does not want a young girl to die just because no one was able to come to her rescue, and builds up the courage to enter the deep end of the pool. He dives in just in time to rescue the drowning soul and conquers his fear of deep water, all because of courage.
“They were tired of speed floating. They wanted to race and when they did, it pleased them” (64). This is where the journey to swimming success was ignited; the ditch races between the children. Sakamoto was not the one to suggest the races, but the children were. They were the spark to the real competition that began. Before they all knew it the 3YSC was created and it took of with a boom that meant many kids setting island records (75). In less than two years, these so-called “ditch kids of Maui” went from not knowing how to swim to wanting to compete more than anything and achieving higher than anyone could have ever imagined. I found this event most important because these ditch kids who faced a world of adversity, were finding joy in a sport that not only took their heart, but also
“When I was little, we used to have something called Swim Team at our Britannia Clubhouse,” Bilan says. “I loved it. We got to swim, try different moves and techniques and have fun in the
Swimming is often referred to as an individual sport. In competition you are given a lane, a heat, and you compete for your time. Answer one question then, to prove its nature of individuality, at the seven hundred meter mark of the gruesome fifteen hundred, when the lactic acid has built up, and your body feels like failing, what pushes you beyond a point you have never reached before? The drowned out sounds of a team cheering, or seeing a friend charge through crowds flailing their arms through the air, is all I need to keep going and represent my team in a race to the finish. In addition to cheering during races, it is important to have the encouragement of your teammates all the time at practice, at school and, even in more personal matters. A team gives you a sense of belonging or a sense of discouragement that keeps you from your true potential. A community of a team extends much past the athletes, to the parents, as well. A team in which everyone is recognized for what they do/ can do compared to a special “elite” group of swimmers leads to a new level of pride and confidence for the younger athletes. Lastly, the philosophy of the coach is a critical component to the success of an athlete. One may believe in narrowing in on the naturally talented and the other coach strives to train each individual to maximum potential. I have been a part of two very different swim clubs in my development as an athlete, both of which helped me become my personal best, and who I am today in and out of the water. Although both the Ajax Aquatic Club and the Whitby Dolphins helped me develop my talents, abilities and, confidence, it is through the Whitby Dolphins that I recognize the need for strong interpersonal relationships with teammates, t...
"The Swimmer." Short Stories for Students. Ed. Kathleen Wilson. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 1997. 278-294. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 29 Jan. 2014.
It was a very cool day, overcast with a drip of rain here and there. Waves were vicious, water was as cold as the arctic, and my weak body was always being compared to a pencil. I began my swim as I attempted to avert the waves but, I seemed impossible. They kept pushing me back, yelling at me to go back to the beach, today is not your day. The waves, they swept me away with ease. I was a squirrel in a dog's mouth, a ragdoll, being tossed every which way. Tossed off balance underwater, I was baffled. My lungs whimpered for air, my body slowly drifting away. The aspect was blackening, the whole world spinning in circles, then, I felt weightless…
As a competitive swimmer, I train 19 hours a week as a member of the University of Manitoba Bison’s Men’s Swim Team. However, growing up, I was never a great swimmer. I just didn’t have the classic swimmer body type—tall, long limbs with big hands and feet—but I loved the sport. Looking back, I can imagine how my parents felt. Their short, scrawny kid desperately wanted to be in a sport that he wasn’t meant for.
Athletics has made a difference in my life through its redefining of the word “success.” Before I got involved with track and cross country, success was measured by goals I set and achieved for myself that made me happy. Since then, I have realized that success is much more gratifying when it is dependent on making those around me proud. In track, success is when I have trained hard enough so that I am able to help my relay team win a race or break the school record. In cross country, success is when I have built up enough endurance to contribute to the team score and help my team move on to the state meet. This mentality has translated to my daily life, as I am constantly working hard to please those around me. At school, I always do my homework and get good grades so that my teachers do not have to focus extra energy on getting me to do my work. At work, I strive to go above and beyond my typical duties so that I can lessen the responsibilities of my co-workers. At home, I help out with chores without being asked so that my parents can have one less thing
Immediately, I angled my position and went for a dead sprint toward the water. I jumped off the cliff. I never felt anything like it; the trajectory had me flying through the air for longer than I expected. A surge of adrenaline pulsed through my body, bringing a new sense of life to me. The scorching heat went away as gravity pulled my body toward the water, bringing me a pleasant breeze through my fall. Then, I finally hit the water. I didn’t stick a solid landing, as I went head first into the water. I panicked and opened my eyes under the murky water, only to see nothing but dirt and sediments float around me. I kept sinking and saw a monstrous fish swim right in front of my face. At that very moment, my body went into overdrive, and I managed to project myself back up to the surface.
For the past 10 years, competitive swimming exposed me to a variety of new people. My adult role models along with my closest friends all connect to my swimming career in some way. I was honored to be named a captain of my high school swim team, a recognition only few receive on our 50-member team. Being a captain not only meant leading pre-swim exercises and receiving an award at the end of the year, it meant having people look up to me and being accountable for my actions. When a swimmer raced poorly or needed some encouragement, that swimmer turned to me. Having a constant smile on my face or saying “we can do it” became an everyday occurrence. Parents frequently approached me to say how much I impacted their child’s life or how they came home saying my pre-meet pep talk encouraged them through their tough races. While completing a team
The occupation I chose was Athletes and Sports Competitors. The sport I want to go into is football. The nature of work is based on practice and the work you put into when you step on the field to play the game. The sport of football is in a way complicated but simple after a while. It is a fun sport to play, but to play in the NFL you need to have a lot of talent. The typical work setting is a sports arena. For example the New York Giants play in in MetLife stadium. Educational wise they need to know the English language, administration and management, psychology, communications and media, and lastly therapy and counseling. The employment of athletes and the sports competitors is expected to grow at least six percent from 2014 to 2024. And
Growing up my dad played in the NFL and my mother volunteered in the non-profit world, many different churches, and other local charity events. As my mom worked as a volunteer in these many different events I got to see how people managed to safely attracts hundreds and sometimes even thousands of people to an event to raise awareness and donate money for a specific cause. When event I remember her taking part in was a mud run that raised awareness for sickle cell. There were people who were apart of the vent management staff, and then there was people who were recruited as volunteers based off of profile status such as: professional athletes, governments officials, or celebrities. Often times the turnout of the event depended on who the particular person was that was volunteering for that specific event, and the entertainment that was provided during the event. For example, in the particular mud run it attracted people who wanted to compete in a 5k race, and those people who were just interested in supporting a cause. Being around professional athletes growing