The Wildcat
SPORTS The Senior Issue
June 12, 2014
descending from a lineage of swimmers
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junior diego pabalan carries on swim legacy that began in native Philippines by Jaymi Wilson, News Editor Photos by TRENT PRESTON
Carrying on the family legacy, junior Diego Pabalan has been swimming since he was six years old. Coming from a family of swimmers, Pabalan has always had an affinity for the water, but admits that it was his father that really encouraged him to become involved in swimming. Not only was his father a competitor on a waterpolo team, eight other family members in the Philippines received swim scholarships. That his family was so involved in competitive swim and water polo inspired Pabalan to take up the sport. When asked about the Philippines, Pabalan joked about the weather difference, saying that it is much hotter there than it is in the U.S. He also mentioned that all of the pools in the Philippines are outdoors and that the swimming competition is much greater in the U.S. because the U.S. is a larger nation and it is more difficult to place in meets. Although he earned many medals and set age-group records when he was younger, his goal for this season on varsity swim was to earn MVP in the competitive Century League. Despite not earning the honor—Foothill’s Spencer Kendall was named the league’s top swimmer—Pabalan did earn MVP honors for the BOHS varsity team, an accomplishment he is proud of. Of the challenges of adjusting to competing in the States, Pabalan said, “In the Philippines, I could easily go top ten in my age group. But here, it is a bigger challenge to get the placing that I had when I competed at home.” Pabalan works hard to improve through
PAGE DESIGN BY | SHARON CHO
FLYING THROUGH THE WATER: Above, junior Diego Pabalan practices his butterfly technique. Pabalan has been swimming since he was a child in the Philippines, and has been setting records ever since. This season, Pabalan swam the second fastest 100-yard backstroke in Wildcat history.
rigorous training, which includes swimming 10,000 meters every day, during three hour sessions with his coach, Brian Brown, and his club team, the Fullerton Fast. Although Pabalan competes in the Spring on the BOHS team, he trains year-round with the Fullerton club to focus on yardage training, which he was accustomed to in the Philippines.
According to Gil Rotblum, head coach, the swim team practices high quality short and rest. “He trained with the high school swim team his freshman year but wanted to go to the other group because of the high yardage they offered,” Rotblum said. “Because Diego has trained since he was so young, he’s used to higher amounts of yardage. A lot of Olympians train with that group, so that really benefits him in the long run.” His times this season include 52:94 in the 100-yard backstroke, the second fastest time in Wildcat history. He also boasts the fifth fastest time in the 200-yard freestyle, and sixth fastest 500-yard freestyle. “Diego is the fastest guy on the team,” Rotblum said. “There are eight individual events in high school swimming, and Diego probably has the fastest time in about six of them.” At the Century League finals from May 6 to 9 at Foothill High School, the Wildcats finished in fourth place, with Pabalan winning, and setting a personal record in, the 100-yard backstroke. He also placed third in the 200yard freestyle with a time 1:46.53. With his busy schedule and training, Pabalan has a hard time managing his social life. To keep it all in balance, he tries to spend time with his friends on campus during the school day and with his swim friends during
meets and practices. “It’s hard to balance both of them,” Pabalan laughed. Because he spends so much time participating in swim, Pabalan has multiple good friends on the team, all of whom he enjoys spending time with and competing with. They encourage him, and Pabalan says that all of his teammates are great. “Diego is a great guy, a fast swimmer, a fantastic motivator for the rest of the team, and a real beaut,” Daniel Parahnevich, sophomore and varsity teammate, said. While he is close to his teammates, Pabalan also stresses how great Rotblum is as a coach and how much he loves the team. According to Rotblum, Pabalan is a “team player” and a “hard worker”, essential traits in an competitive athletics. “It takes a certain amount of ego to be an athlete. When Diego swims, he honestly thinks he’s going to win,” Rotblum said. “But Diego’s been very respectful on the team and the guys on the team really respect what he can do because they know how hard he works.” Pabalan’s biggest goal is to earn a swim scholarship to a Division I or Division II college, but after college he is unsure if he wants to continue swimming. “Maybe I’d like to compete [in the] Olympics someday to represent the Philippines,” Pabalan said. The BOHS Wildcat Newspaper