As far back as I can remember, swimming has played a significant role in my life.
My mom was a competitive swimmer and joyfully shared her love for the sport with my siblings and me.
Each and every night, when my dad would get home from work, we would all head down to our neighborhood pool.
In those hours spent in the water, I not only learned the strokes and mastered the basic fundamentals of swimming, but more than anything, I uncovered a passion.
Swimming was no longer just a fun neighborhood activity for me.
It was a way of life.
A mindset shift
Around the age of thirteen, I decided it was time to take swimming to a new level of competition. By this time, my family had moved from South Africa to Great Britain, and I was fortunate enough to qualify for the British Summer Age Group Championships. When I was thirteen, I qualified for my first ever nationals.
Accompanying this change were workouts of greater intensity, longer practice sessions, and a renewed commitment to being the best swimmer I could possibly be.
Seconds began to fall off of my race times, and I was setting new personal records — almost daily.
Without a doubt, I was completely falling in love with the sport of swimming all over again and began setting my sights on the United States of America.
At the time, my cousin was a member of the swim team at the University of Arkansas. I thought that I, too, could one day travel overseas to compete against some of the best swimmers in the entire world.
Division I swimming entered the realm of possibilities and I was determined to do everything in my power to earn a scholarship to make this a reality.
A dream come true
And in the fall of 2018, those dreams became a reality.
I made the trek halfway across the world to begin my academic and athletic career at East Carolina University.
Although I was over 3,000 miles away from home, I was comforted in the fact that many members of my new team were international competitors and had traveled incredible distances for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, too.
By all accounts, I had extremely successful freshman and sophomore seasons. I captured numerous top ten and top twenty-place finishes and recorded personal bests along the way.
But then, in 2020, at the height of a global pandemic, East Carolina made an announcement that completely stopped me in my tracks.
Due to unforeseen circumstances surrounding COVID-19, the university was cutting its swimming and diving programs permanently.
Although I felt strong feelings of disappointment, devastation, and overall confusion, I simply had no time to process any of these emotions.
I had to pick myself up and figure out exactly how I was going to continue to live out my dream here in the United States.
Without skipping a beat, I entered the transfer portal.
After just one incredible phone call and an overwhelming sense of approval from my parents back home, I committed to continuing my collegiate career at the University of Nebraska.
Upon my arrival, I knew I had found my home away from home. My coaches and teammates welcomed me with open arms and began providing incredible support that — at no point in my three-year-career as a Husker — has ever wavered.
Continued success
While my time in the pool here at Nebraska has been filled with incredible highs and lows, including podium finishes and career-worst performances, I can’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude for each and every moment.
After all, they have led me to a final 2022-2023 season that has, undoubtedly, been the best of my career.
I swam my way to victories and runner-up performances in both the 500 freestyle as well as the 200 butterfly and was a contributing member of top-placing relay teams in multiple meets throughout the season.
At this year’s 2023 Big Ten Championship Meet, I shattered the school record in the 500 freestyle and went on to notch an eighth-place podium finish, and an A final in the 200 free and the 200 fly for Husker Nation.
I am honored to have accomplished all this while representing my family, my teammates and coaches, and most of all, the scarlet and cream.
I promised myself at the start of this fifth season in my collegiate career that I would approach every competition with a positive attitude, a willingness to live in the moment, and a determined mindset to be the best senior leader that I could be for these outstanding athletes and this prestigious university.
This week, I have the great honor of returning to my home country and competing in the British Championships.
I will have the opportunity to put on full display the impact that my time in the United States, and more specifically here at the University of Nebraska, has had on my swimming ability and my life as a whole.
No matter where this journey of life leads me, I will always be grateful for this positive impact and for all of the love and support that I have received throughout my time in this wonderful community.
While it will be difficult to leave at the conclusion of this final semester, I plan to return to England and hope to attend school to become an occupational therapist.
But, just as it always has, swimming will remain at the center of my world.
After all, it has led me on this incredible journey abroad, and there is not a single moment that I would ever change.
