‘Not Tired’: Motivation and Perseverance

Our coach may have been the catalyst, but we were the swimmers who kept the reaction going.

Spectators at the 2018 Indiana High School State Boys' Swimming Championship back in February may have seen some kids decked out in blue and gold, waving signs that said: “NOT TIRED.”

Those same spectators might have wondered what that phrase meant, or why these kids were so enthusiastic in their cheering, but few could understand how an incredible team atmosphere was built on those two words.

Rewind to 2016, when as a scrawny 8th grader, I walked onto the pool deck after a full season of cross country running to meet a new swim coach.

Months behind my peers, I came to that first practice in December out of shape, apprehensive and a little skeptical. After all, our team had experienced massive turnover in coaching staff, and I didn’t even know what to call this coach.