Swimmers across the world are turning pros, and are making great money. But before all that luxury, there is hard work, time, and effort to put! They train every day, and even have specific diets to fit their swimming!

Wayne State University head coach, Sean Peters spends approximately 5-6 months with a swimmer He really tries to understand his swimmer’s weaknesses and strengths to train them for meets. Peters says “My approach is to work with each individual and have them work within our system.” After every meet, he works with his swimmers and tries to improve them as much as he can.

University of Michigan swimmer, Ryan Feeley, strives for better swimming times. He has a special “low-glycemic diet”, which means he chooses foods with low glucose. In addition, he loves pushing himself mentally and physically. Feeley states, “If I wasn’t able to push my limits either mentally or physically in each practice, then I lost an opportunity to get better!”.

Ryan Feeley

Wayne State University Senior captain, Ben Winn, once wanted to quit because of pressure, stress, and personal problems. But, he didn’t let go, Ben had a great family and swim team to get him through that stage. Usually in every athlete’s career they go through a stage where they start doubting themselves and believe they’re not good enough. Ben comes home sore and tired every night, but Ben says that, “Ice is a swimmer’s best friend, because it helps dull any pain and reduces inflammation.” Furthermore, Ben has also had severe asthma attacks. While he does breathing sets, his asthma really starts giving in and gives him a hard time at practice.

Ben Winn

Likewise, Ryan Feeley and Ben Winn both strive for the better. They both have the same goals and are very persistent. Even though they have small differences at the end they both want to be the best swimmers they can be. Ryan and Ben both work very hard and both have lots of sacrifices, but at the end we believe that their names will be heard in the swimming world.

Moreover, Coach Sean Peters really cares! As you can tell, he crosses the line with his swimmers. He knows how to train them and can really get them a name. Let’s say that a swimmer can’t make a career, Coach Peters will help find the swimmers special skills, and will even put in a recommendation to someone that can help the swimmer. Lastly, Coach Peters will never give up on a swimmer and still would have hope for them.

To come to an end, the swimming world is hard. It takes courage and patience. Some will make it, and some will not. But everyone should have a chance to do what they want in life.

Ola Albayati

Middle School Journalist