By Hazel Solender, Swimming World intern
PISCATAWAY – Finding your passion is not something that you can do in a day. It takes time, hard work, motivation, and dedication. Each swimmer at the CeraVe Invitational has their own journey to finding their passion for swimming.
Brooke Travis, a 14-year-old distance swimmer, began to swim for a very simple reason: she did not want to drown! However, as she started to take lessons, she realized that swimming would be her athletic calling. What began as a survival method is now a daily way of life.
Photo Courtesy: Hazel Solender
Others began their swimming career due to family ties. “My sister swam, and so I was dragged to the pool,” said 17-year-old Caroline Poleway, a freestyle and backstroke swimmer. However, she did not enjoy it at first. It took time, but once she found friends to support her, she realized that she truly loved swimming. Now she knows that swimming leads to a healthy lifestyle, and this motivates her even more.
Sprinter Andrea Galea, 16, said her mother, a former swimmer, got her interested in the sport. But this is not why she swims now. “I know that all the hard work that I put into it will get me success,” she said, “and that is why I continued with it.”
Not all swimmers had practical reasons or family pushing them to swim. In fact, some found it on their own. When asked why he swims, 16-year-old Christopher Balbo said: “I always loved the beach.” His parents put him in lessons when he was about a year old, but they were not thinking about it becoming a serious activity.
“They kept putting me in other sports!” he said with a laugh. They tried basketball, soccer and lacrosse, but none seemed to stick. Finally, he managed to convince them that swimming was what he truly wanted to do, and he joined Cougar Aquatic Team. He has been swimming ever since, specializing in distance freestyle and individual medley.
Swimming is a passion. It takes hard work and determination. But none of it would be possible without dedication. While some of these swimmers were not the ones dragging themselves to the pool, it is certainly why they are all here now.
