July 28, 2006

A Season for Champions

Creekside Swim Team takes home another winning title

By Laura Firchow
Times Intern

What does it mean to be a champion? To some it may simply mean being the best, the strongest and the fastest. To others, it may mean achieving a personal goal, even if you didn’t beat the competition. Champions may be personified by strength and endurance or by team spirit and dedication. The 2006 Creekside Cudas Swim Team has accomplished everything it means to be a true champion.

Most kids spend their summer sleeping in late. By the time most kids their age are just waking up, the Creeskide Cudas have already practiced for an hour, showered, eaten breakfast and are ready to take on the day. Although it is a difficult task, the dedicated swimmers on Creekside manage to wipe the sleep out of their eyes and hop in the pool at times as early as 7 a.m. Assistant Coach and former Creekside swimmer Paul Santos said, “even though it’s hard to go to morning practice, the older kids benefit greatly from it. It’s a great work out, it keeps them in good physical condition, and requiring them to come to practice as much often as possible teaches them to be consistent and dedicated.” Photos by Dona Nichols

The 2006 Cabana League swim season was full of excitement, surprises and tough competition for the Creekside Cudas. The team had an incredible 178 swimmers competing this season. This record number of swimmers made for a challenging start to the season with crowded lanes at after-school practice and busy schedules throughout the season for both the swimmers and their parents.

Overall, the Cuda swimmers, parents and coaches all pulled together to make this the most successful season in Cudas’ history.

The Cudas hosted the Championship meet at Saratoga High School on Saturday, July 15, a task which would have been unmanageable if it weren’t for the team’s dedicated parent representatives, JoEllen Firchow and Diane Walker, and finals coordinator, Grace Soto, along with a group of parent volunteers who spent tireless hours preparing not only for the Championship meet, but also for the other meets and social events throughout the season.

The Cudas ended the season with a 5-0 record in the Dual Meet Competition. Although they entered the Championship meet as an undefeated team, the Cudas kept competitors in perspective. Every swimmer on the team swam wonderfully throughout the course of the season, but none of the Cudas swam as competitively as they did on
July 15. The Cudas had an unbelievable 200 improved times at Champs this year.

During the course of the season, five all-time Cuda records were broken by swimmers, including 12-year-old Claire Karlsson with a 29.76 in the 50-yard butterfly, and a 31.88 in the 50-yard breaststroke. Sean Gray, 14, also broke two records, swimming a 26.34 in the 50-yard butterfly, and an unbelievable 24.11 in the 50-yard freestyle. Lastly, Alyssa Stride, 10 swam with impeccable technique and finished with an 18.28 in the 25-yard breaststroke.

This incredible swimming, dedication and hard work are what earned the Cudas the title of Cabana League Champions for the second year in a row.

This year, the Cudas represented their team with new Cuda colors. The red, white and blue color scheme was so popular with the swimmers and parents, that they will permanently become the new Cuda colors. For this year’s finals parade, the Cudas were decked out in red, white and blue apparel, matching team shirts, hats, streamers, goofy glasses, necklaces and bandanas. The parade was lead by Cuda parent Saskia Pinto’s group of swimmers-turned-stilt-walkers, including Mickey Lee, Isabelle Gonzalez, Oscar Gonzalez, Nate Tolamo, and Melissa Madrid.

Focus is the Key to Competition
Karlsson, 12, has been swimming competitively for Creekside since the young age of 4. During her time so far with the Cudas, Claire has grown into a beautiful young lady, and a fine and skilled athlete.

Creekside is lucky to have an athlete like Karlsson swimming for their team. She is a very consistent swimmer who gives it her all every time she enters the water. The crowd and the coaches love to watch her swim because of her smooth, strong stroke and her flawless technique.

Her mother, Kristine Blanton said, “Claire has beautiful technique. I love watching her swim the butterfly because of her power and strength.”

Even at the young age of 12, Karlsson is looked at by many members of the team as a leader. She sets a wonderful example for swimmers who are both younger and older than her.

The most valuable lesson that every athlete can learn from Karlsson is how to be a humble winner.

The outstanding sportsmanship and class that Karlsson portrays through her swimming astonishes swimmers, parents and coaches alike. Never will you hear Claire boast about her skill or her remarkable times to other swimmers. And never will you see her leave the pool after her races without a physical or verbal pat on the back to her competitors.

“I never feel like I am better than anyone else, because everyone has potential to be great swimmers,” Karlsson said. “Things can change in an instant, and that is why I feel it is never in my place to act like I am over people.”

Undoubtedly, Karlsson’s fellow swimmers wonder if she has a secret to success. Does she have any rituals or routines that help her excel in her racing? Is there a special diet that she follows before a big meet?

It seems that Claire’s secret is simply to focus. A tip that she gives to other swimmers is, “I believe you should always close you eyes and imagine yourself doing flawless strokes. It always gets me pumped up and feeling good about myself’.

When you are a dedicated athlete, it is never too early to start thinking about your future in the sport you excel in. Karlsson has given that some thought and said, “My top priority is to get into a good college and have a job I love. Swimming is something I love to do and will continue for the rest of my life, but sometimes I feel that perhaps it is not something I would like to do career-wise. I am more focused on getting my life to a good start.”

A Swimmer with the Drive to Win
For some, Creekside Swim Team is mostly about having fun, enjoying the team and making new friends. On the other hand, it’s mainly about the competition for some of Creekside’s other swimmers.

Gray, 14 seems to have found the perfect balance between the two. Being a Creekside swimmer for 11 years now, Sean has had the opportunity to build friendships out of the pool, and build on his endurance in the pool.

A sea of trophies to be distributed to the Creekside Cudas, this year’s Cabana League Champions and Dual Meet Champions.

Gray is a very strong and determined athlete. At the Championship meet alone this season, Gray astonished the crowd with his unbelievable swimming and record times.

Gray’s favorite part about Creekside Swim Team is, “the people and the relationships, I love being around people,” he said.

This is obvious when you first meet Sean. He is a very personable young man who can hold a conversation with anyone and win the heart of every girl on the team. He appears simply to be a light-hearted teenager who is all about socializing, but in a deeper conversation with Sean, you come to realize that he is one of the most serious and driven people when it comes to competition.

“The ultimate thing that drives me is the will to win,” Gray said. “I hate losing. I know people say it’s about having fun, but to me losing is no fun. I believe that every sport is mostly mental. If you go into a race thinking you are going to lose, you’ve already lost. So it all mainly comes down to having a winning attitude.”

This attitude is what brings Gray so much success in swimming and surely in other areas of his life.

Proud parents, Russell and Cheri Gray said, “We are very happy for Sean. I think every parent's dream for their child is to the child learn early in life how to set goals, put in the work, push through the challenges and see those dreams come true. These are character qualities that will carry Sean to success in all areas of like, including non-athletic goals.”

Although swimming has been a huge part of Gray’s life, his true passion lies in football. Gray said, “I love football. I can’t get enough of it. God willing, I will play football my entire life. However, I do plan on swimming for Creekside as long as I can.”