Ahmed Ismail '24 Recruiting Profile

As a five-year-old, I dipped my toes into the world of swimming. Initially, my mother emphasized that the swimming lessons were for my safety, often inferred that it was a basic survival tip. However, in 2016, I encountered the greatest swimming challenge that not only helped me throughout my journey in college but also taught me how to be resilient in the face of adversities in life and while studying.

Growing up, we were not well-off, so we lived in a rental building without access to a private swimming pool. However, my parents valued swimming as a basic right of survival and enrolled me in swimming lessons from the age of five. Initially, swimming was just a hobby and a safety skill for me, but this was altered by my passion for doing it professionally in competitions in the United States that culminated from watching the Olympics on television. On countless times, I pictured myself as a swimmer being cheered on by spectators and surrounded by buzzing clouds as I dived in and successfully beat my competitors. 

Armed with my innate desire to compete in the Olympics, I put in much effort exercising and practicing, and eventually, the hard work started to pay off. My times dropped, my strokes got stronger, and I could feel the progress with every session. These improvements prompted me to make several attempts in a bid to swim within the qualifying time for the Speedo Sectionals. Winning this was important because the Speedo Sectionals are designed and implemented by the USA Swimming for athletes on the road to National and International success. 

Failing to meet the target time seven times by one millisecond (0.01) became a challenge that went from a distant dream to something that felt within arm's reach. My swimming coach approached me, seeing the disappointment and lack of hope for meeting the qualifying time for the Speedo Sectionals. His assurance that he had undying trust in my ability created a new confidence level in me. During the qualifying race, I channeled my passion, skill, confidence, and the coach's support to push myself towards attaining the qualifying time. The cheers and claps, seemingly mimicking a victory parade in the Olympics from my teammates during the race, further motivated me, and I eventually qualified for the Speedo Sectionals.

This challenging swimming experience has solidified my resilience, passion, and perseverance daily, including my significant decisions and efforts during my college journey. The experience I have garnered from my failures during the qualifiers for joining the Speedo Sectionals Meet has taught me to master the art of determination and grit. In addition, swimming is a sport and a hobby that requires significant dedication and effective planning. This memorable experience has positively influenced my time management skills and perseverance in the face of adversity. Such skills have been pertinent in effectively managing my time; as such, I have managed to attend all my college classes and swimming lessons without being late or absconding from any of them. The experiences have enhanced my resilience when I encounter challenging topics in the classroom that require additional work and research to master them successfully.

My goal is to represent the United States in the swimming Olympics and gain a spot at the Speedo Sectionals Meet. I desire to use the challenges and obstacles as a swimmer as the foundation for my journey towards my success in the Speedo Sectionals Meet and as a representative of the country in the national Olympics.