Aidan Rowan '18 Recruiting Profile

    I began swimming with a private coach seven years ago -- this was my first step towards competitive swimming. A few months after, I decided to join my middle school's swim team. I had a blast being immersed in the competitive experience and the new aspects of swimming I had not noticed through swim lessons. My sixth grade year I made varsity, and while that was awesome I still wasn't content with my ability as a swimmer. I wanted to get better, so I trained harder. I was one of the top swimmers on my team: until a group of club kids joined and blew me out of the water. Of course, I wanted to be as fast as these 'new' swimmers, so I asked my mum about joining the club team and we made it happen. I swam for Loveland swim club for three years before I was diagnosed with tendinitis in my right shoulder. I was told to take practices a little easier than I had been in order to help along my recovery. However, I started to notice my peers passing me in skill and improving their times while I was still trying to recover. Being naive, I attempted to push myself harder to catch up, but ultimately was taken out of swim for a few weeks in order to streamline my recovery. 

    Once I started swimming again, I lasted approximately three months before my coach told me to quit the team. I was too far behind the other kids and my times had become too slow for that group. I continued swimming for my high school, but only continued to fall further behind my friends in club. As discouraging as this was, I decided that no one could take away the love for swimming I had developed over my years in club, middle school, and high school swimming. Since I've made this decision, I've broken a minute on my 100 Free, nearly made state in my 100 Back, and have rejoined club swimming. I'm decided that I'm willing to put in the extra effort needed to become what I want to be: better. This has always been my goal -- academically, in the pool, and in life -- and in order to enable myself to pursue this goal after high school, I am searching for a college coach that will push me and a school that will allow me to continue to challenge myself academically.