Every morning at 5 a.m. Lexie Mulvihill begins her day, jumping into the cold pool, starting at the black line ready to start her first practice of the day. Mulvihill is a star swimmer for the Steinbrenner swim team and is turning heads with her skill. Her hard work and dedication shine through as she plans to compete in the upcoming Olympic trials.
“When I was younger, I played other sports but I always loved the water. My parents have always encouraged me to do what makes me happy and swimming did that for me. My dad actually swam in college so he introduced me to the sport, but ultimately it was my interest and love for swimming that made me stick to it,” said Mulvihill.
Organized swim is not something that most people can take to. For Mulvihill, it all began when she was eight years old and she’s stuck with it ever since. Going on her eighth year of swimming, her interest is still going strong.
“I practice six days a week with two practices multiple days a week. Every morning before school I drive 40 minutes to get to practice, which means I wake up at 4:15 a.m. every day… showing up every day is definitely not enough, and if you want to meet your full potential you need to always give your best effort. Learning the importance of this really helped me grow as a swimmer this summer,” said Mulvihill.
To most people, the amount of work she puts into perfecting her craft seems excessive. Mulvihill views it as a major positive, seeing that she gets to do what she loves every day.
“To go to the Olympic trials, you have to get the qualifying time for that event. The work you have to put into swimming can be a lot but achieving such a high accomplishment, such as the trials makes everything worth it in the end,” said Mulvihill.
Being able to compete in the Olympic trials is a big deal for any swimmer. Those competing in the meet have one major goal, to get their hand on the wall first. How it works is the top two finishers in all but one event, make the Olympic team. One event accepts the top six swimmers, and that is the 100 free.
“I definitely want to swim at the collegiate level. So far, I have some schools in mind and have already talked to many coaches over the phone and in person. Now that I’m a junior and the college recruiting process has started, I have to think about the path I want to take after high school… I’ve already visited schools and have other official visits planned,” said Mulvihill.
Being an athlete can open many doors, and with her extreme skill set, Mulvihill will have many great opportunities in her future.
Elena Melikian // Sports Editor
