COVID-19 Effect
Right now, there is a pandemic affecting the world, called COVID-19. This virus has impacted so many people and their ability to do everyday things. Daily activities have been restricted until further notice, including going to school, playing a sport, seeing friends. These things are gone for now and life is completely different.
For me, living in New Canaan CT, our school was shut down and so was the New Canaan YMCA, which is where my team, the New Canaan Aquianas (NCA), and I practice our sport (synchronized swimming). Switching to online learning was not so hard for me, however, it is very difficult to practice synchronized swimming without a pool. I have been out of the pool for 5 weeks so far. It is known in my sport that if you are out of the pool for one week, it takes a month to catch up. There is no substitute for the pool workouts. They are much more intense than working out on land.
Our coaches have been working tirelessly to try and figure out how we as swimmers will continue to stay in shape. They give us daily land workouts, which will be the norm until we are able to jump back into the water. Yet, it is not the same. It is heartbreaking to be stripped of something you love so deeply, though I recognize that it pales as compared to the many other losses challenging people today. Luckily for other land sports, like soccer, athletes are still able to play them. But for athletes who swim in pools daily, it is a completely different situation. Our entire season’s competitions have been canceled as a result of the virus. And even if we are able to get back to the pool in May, it will take months of hard work to get our endurance back.
Just before the virus broke out, the 13-15 and 16-19 age groups were working hard to prepare for Nationals, our biggest championship of the season. In this event, the best teams in the US would be competing nationally. NCA always places in the top 3 in the country in every category: solo, duet, team, and combo. This is an amazing result for a northeast team that competes against teams from the south and west. The California teams usually come out on top. We are the #1 team in the northeast and have been for years! But now, that championship has been canceled. I know that our team and coaches are devastated by this as many of us (including myself) will be aging out of our current team and this was our last chance to have a successful season.
My hope is that this virus ends soon and that we, as a society, can get back to our normal lives and routines. I miss swimming every day, my teammates and the memories I would have been able to make in my final season of being on the 13-15A team. Not being able to compete for me is a loss I cannot even describe. I am already looking forward to next year...so you next season, Nationals :)
