Ben Shen '21 Recruiting Profile

My strengths and what I hope to achieve

For as long as I can remember, I have dreamed about going to an American college. When I began swimming, I was still unaware that swimming could allow me to get into some of the most academically and athletically renowned universities in the world. As a generally inexperienced racer, I like to think I have an immense amount of room for improvement in every stroke and event considering my current achievements. In my opinion, my strengths are bringing an encouraging atmosphere to the team which, in return, allows myself to perform better. 

Background

I only started competitive swimming in mid-2017. At this point in time, I was going a 1.20 for 100 LCM Breaststroke. However, at the start of 2018, I had my breakthrough when I made nationals by dropping 9 seconds off my 100m Breast down to 1.11.49. I proceeded to win a bronze medal at NSW State Championships 2018 with a time of 1.08.85. With a successful year of swimming, I hoped to achieve even more in 2019. Unfortunately, due to my inexperience in racing, I ran into a lot of mental barriers and did not achieve much apart from winning a silver medal at state in December. 2020 has gone off to a great start with my exceptional times in training making me confident about the season ahead.