Photo by Emei Thompson
This week I interviewed one of the men’s swim captains, junior Travis Charlow. Last week, the Men’s Swim Team was named Scholar All-American by the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America for their combined 3.01 GPA.
Arianna Cohen: Both the Men’s and Women’s Swim Teams were just named Academic All-Americans. What does this mean to you, from a captain’s perspective?
Travis Charlow: This was a great accomplishment for both teams. It truly shows the hard work that we all put in out of the pool and the high standard we hold each other to.
AC: As a junior captain, you still have a year left. What are some of your personal goals for the rest of your swimming career?
TC: The goals for the rest of my swimming career are simply to be the best I can be at the sport I have spent almost all my life doing. Along with that would be have a great time with my teammates. As much as I like doing well, I get the most enjoyment out of meets such as conference when I see how happy my teammates get from swimming great. That is one of the big reasons I have stuck with this sport—when you put in the work it really shows, especially at conference.
AC: You had a great finish this weekend, finishing fourth in the 500 freestyle at the Wisconsin Private College Championships at Carthage College. What are some of the keys to your continued success?
TC: I owe a lot of my success to everyone I train with day in and day out. They push me to my limit every day. I look forward to practice most days for the fact that I know that I will get to race some of the fastest swimmers in our conference. It fuels my competitive spirit and prepares me for every meet we have because I get to race so often.
AC: What is one thing, looking back on the season as a whole, that has stuck out in your mind in terms of the whole team’s success?
TC: With everyone being so successful it is easy to see the difference in team spirit on the pool deck at meets. When anyone looks down at the end of the pool you can guarantee that there will be a handful of Lawrence swimmers cheering on their teammates. It is spectacular and noticeable by everyone who is there to witness it. It is really special and keeps all of us going through tough swims.
AC: What are your team goals for the conference meet coming up?
TC: Some team goals for conference coming up are lifetime bests in as many events as possible and getting as many swimmers back for finals as we can. It would be a nice close to the season if both teams can finish well in the team standings at conference.