Endless Wins in Summer Swimming’s Losing Seasons

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Photo Courtesy: Erin Himes

By Erin Himes, Swimming World College Intern

Every summer since I was six years old, I knew the Tuesday after Memorial day to signal one thing: the start of summer swim team. My time as a Kennett Square Golf & Country Club Croc sparked my passion for swimming and kept it alive through the later years, when club swimming had taken all I had to give. From swimming to later coaching the team, many things remained the same through the years, including our record. Season after season, we came out usually with one win among our six swim meets. But it never really felt like losing at all.

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Photo Courtesy: Sheila Himes

When winning becomes everything, disappointment is ever-present. A good swim feels like a failure or a strong team effort turns into a blame game of whose fault the loss was. But for my summer team, that was never the case. We came to every meet with our team shirts on, temporary tattoos on our faces, and positive attitudes.

Older kids set up string bracelets in the corner and helped entertain the young kids when meets went a little later into the night than they were used to. We lined the pool deck and screamed our decade old cheers during all of the relays, even if we had no chance of winning the meet.

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Photo Courtesy: Sheila Himes

And when we eventually got that one win each year, it felt far more meaningful than any other wins I had been a part of. We celebrated like we had won the league, playing games during practice the next morning, a tradition I grew to count on when I was a kid and made sure to help carry on as a coach.

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Photo Courtesy: Sheila Himes

In summer swimming, there are so many little wins happening everyday that losing meets ended up feeling ultimately less important. When the five-year-old who has been jumping off the blocks all season finally dives headfirst during a meet or a girl who has never swam before this summer works hard enough to make the A-relay. When an eighth grader who has finally mastered a flip turn expresses interest in high school swimming and when you watch a group of 10-year-olds go from complete strangers to best friends in just six weeks. Or when you watch a high school swimmer so close to burning out find their passion again, just as you did years before.

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Photo Courtesy: Sheila Himes

These are the wins that make summer swimming everything that it is. The meets fall secondary to the passion growing inside of so many for their team and this sport. Summer swimming kept my love for the sport growing through years of swimming and coaching, and watching it do the same for others assures me that losing meets means little when you’re having the time of your life. 

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Helen Nelligan
Helen Nelligan
7 years ago

Great article,Erin. You give swimming such a powerful boost in all your writings. This one especially with the win/loss history, makes me understand a whole new concept of competition. Interesting how being so team spirited, seeing so many others experiencing a variety of reactions level out the myriad of feelings of participants.
Very interesting human dynamics. Look forward to reading your next article.

Coach Ken
Coach Ken
7 years ago

Great article by a great person that I had the honor of coaching those summers. I remember everyone of those years with fondness, especially The Cube years.

Steph K
Steph K
7 years ago

Awesome article! Summer swimming is the best! I loved every minute when I was a kid and now my daughter is too!

Rosie
Rosie
7 years ago

What a beautifully written article that could not be more true! Getting that (one) W, the last meet held in the Cube, was my most favorite win of all time. A memory I will always hold on to.

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