Sports

By Grace Cueter & Julia Liagre MANAGING EDITOR & INTERN

When entering the North pool at any time between 3:20 and 5:30 p.m., you will be able to find senior Louden Fuchs, a dedicated, loyal and hardworking swimmer. In addition to his multiple AP classes, student council role, and various other clubs, Fuchs dedicates multiple hours each day to perfecting his swim technique. 7:25 a.m. marks the time that Fuchs wakes up to get ready for school, however it is only the start of a long day ahead for the swimmer. When he arrives at school, his seven hour school day is filled with many challenging courses, his favorite being AP Microeconomics. When the last bell rings at 3:05 p.m., Fuchs heads straight to the pool for a two hour long practice, where he has a routine that helps him prepare for upcoming competition.

“Practice usually looks like a 25 minute warmup, leading then into our main sprint set, with a quick warm down at the end,” Fuchs said.

A healthy body is necessary to compete at a high level in swimming. Unfortunately, Fuchs faced a shoulder injury his junior year that forced him to take a year off of the sport and continues to affect him.

“I'm getting off of my broken shoulder,” Fuchs said. “It kind of hurts to swim sometimes so I just have to take it slower this year.”

Fuchs also has to watch his diet, as a healthy yet energizing palette is required to swim at a fast pace. The swimmer says that managing food intake is very important, specifically restricting carbs so that he can drop his weight, while still eating the amount necessary to have the energy to compete.

Fuchs notes that his many years of experience have allowed him to take away many things from the sport. He has learned his favorites and least favorites, and says his favorite event is the 100-Freestyle because it is the most straightforward stroke. He also explains that his past and current coaches have impacted his life in many ways, teaching him about the value of balance.

“The most valuable lesson I have learned is to pace myself, and not rush through things,” Fuchs said.

Fuchs began swimming at the age of five, and has been persistent with his commitment to the sport ever since. He has swam with other teams, in multiple events, and been able to challenge himself in multiple aspects throughout the past 13 years of his life. The swimmer does not plan to compete in college, but is grateful that his swimming career has introduced him to some of the most important people in his life.

“I've been swimming all my life,” Fuchs said. “I've met so many kids and have got to connect with other kids from different teams, as well as meet some of my best friends.”

Member of the Grosse Pointe Blue Dolphins combined North and South girls synchronized swimming Team, Helen Aouad is an extremely committed and busy junior. She dedicates more time than just her 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. daily practice time, to becoming the best teammate and athlete she can be. From the time she wakes up at 6:30 a.m., to when she finally lays down to rest at 10:45 p.m., Aouad delicately balances the many aspects of being a student athlete.

When she leaves for school at 7:45 a.m., Aouad is just beginning her long day ahead. She’s in the most demanding year of high school, junior year — and she’s doing it without a tutorial. While many students rely on this extra 50 minutes of peace to do schoolwork, Aouad doesn’t have that luxury. It can be difficult to manage on days when she has a heavier workload, and she’s anticipating increased stress with the pressure of exams coming up. After her long seven hours at North, she heads right to the Neighborhood Club for a workout.

“Once I get home, it’s normally 3:15 p.m. so I get dressed and I go to the gym,” Aouad said. “[I do] mainly cardio, some flexibility, and in the past I’ve done the yoga classes or spin classes there.”

Being such an active teenager combined with the desire to compete and practice at peak performance undoubtedly affects Aouad’s diet. During her freshman year, her coaches said something about nutrition that stuck with her.

“They said when people are exercising they think they don’t need to eat as much food, but it’s the opposite,” Aouad said. “You need to eat a little more to replace what your body is burning off.”

Ever since, Aouad has focused on fueling her body with foods that will help her feel and swim at her best, such as protein and potassium. She learned the hard way how scary and painful it can be if she doesn’t.

“My freshman year I got really severe leg cramps to the point where I couldn’t swim to the wall, I was just bobbing in the water,” Aouad said.

When Aouad gets home from the gym around 5:00 p.m., she quickly turns around to head back to North for synchronized swimming practice, which includes a variety of training. The girls start off with a 20 minute stretch, then break into groups based on difficulty level and finish their two hour practice off with a mock competition where their coaches pretend to be judges.

Ultimately, Aouad’s passion for synchronized swimming is a perfect fit.

“I hated the competitiveness of swim team and being a retired dancer gave me the chance to combine the two things I loved,” Aouad said. Coach Kinyon makes a By Kyleigh Egli & Elly Meteer DISTRIBUTION MANAGER & INTERN splash

This season offers a fresh dive into a clean slate and a new head coach, Kyle Kinyon, for North’s boys swim team.

Before coming to North, Kinyon had accumulated 10 years of head-coaching experience, and with that, he aspires to lead North’s boys swim team to success both individually, and collectively.

“I’ve sat down with some of the boys,” Kinyon said. “I plan to continue doing this just to see what their individual goals are.”

While Kinyon adjusts to his new role as head coach, he continues acclimating to each swim team member. Kinyon intends to spend the first year getting to know each member athletically and personally as he plans to coach the team towards new records.

“There's a couple records I know we’re gonna try to go after.” Kinyon said. “More so though than that, my first year is [focused on] just starting to build to the core with these guys, not scare them away,”

Kinyon finds significance in teamwork, like that found in relays. Relays give the team a chance to work together, and achieve a goal where they each have to rely on one another for.

“When you bring four individuals together trying to compete for a goal they have in mind collectively as a unit, I think it’s a cool thing,” Kinyon said.

Kinyon's main motivation for becoming a coach was to support other’s growth. He values the reward of assisting his protégés, and witnessing their progress and accomplishments.

“[I want to] be a part of that process of helping young men [and] young women identify goals, and be there as they go and achieve those goals,” Kinyon said. “Once that happened for the first time, I was hooked.”