Can Tugcetin '24 Recruiting Profile

Since my childhood, I have been an active athlete and tried different types of sports some competitively: tennis, football (soccer), and skiing to name a few. I started swimming competitively at the age of nine and I decided to concentrate on this extremely demanding sport. My compassion for swimming has helped me thrive, qualifying for two national championships, and winning medals and representing my county in national championships 

Breastroke is my favourite stroke. I excel in of all three breaststroke events but prefer the 200 and the 100. I get better results in long course events as my stroke is more effecient and faster than my competitors, however there is room for improvement on my turns. I won a couple of regional medals in 2019 and I qualified for British Nationals. Unfortunately, I had to take a break from competitive swimming in 2020 due to the pandemic. The pandemic however did not succeed in stopping me from training. The inflatable pool we setup in our garden combined with the strainers attached to the close-by tree provided me with a cheap but effective endless pool to train in. I also paid to use the swimming pool of a neighbour when their schedule allowed it and a run or a cycle on most days. In  December2021, I qualified for my first Winter Nationals which is not swum in age groups. 

I have represented my school several times in both relays and in individual events on the open age group at national competitions. I do enjoy swimming as a team, where we can combine our strengths to achieve great results. Cheering for team mates also brings lots of energy and fun to pool-side – a nice change to the long silent waits for your event on other occasions. 

I have completed my Duke Of Edinburgh Award (Bronze and Silver) which requires 6 months volunteering (as a swim coach at my swimming club), expedition, 6 months physical activity (swimming) and 6 months of skills (playing bassoon). Currently, I am also a student in Abingdon school with a music scholarship playing bassoon (ABRSM grade 8) in the first orchestra - represented school in international concerts i.e Japan and Hong Kong and double bass (ABRSM grade 6) as well as classical and bass guitar as a hobby.

I spend many hours training but have a strong academic background. I had to study very hard to be able to get into my current school, which is selective. Since then, I have been working hard to keep the high level of academic success I was able to achieve.  This is the main reason I would like to study in the US. There are only a few universities in the UK that provide good facilities to support a successful swimming career but unfortunately, they are not as strong academically. Conversely, there are many US universities, which offer excellent swimming facilities with even a stronger academic offering.