by Evan Paneras

6 am. The sun had not yet risen.

Waves of steam are coming out of the water. The lights of the swimming pool form a screen with the fog. Just a few minutes ago I was dreaming, now we are waiting for our coach to give us the signal to dive into the water. Goosebumps all over ... It is freezing outside.

For most of us, it only takes a few seconds to cross the 50m swimming pool from one end to the other. For me, sometimes it feels like 30 seconds of never ending anxious chaos.

In these few seconds needed to reach a new record, time strangely expands. I see a stopwatch running in my mind, the time ticking faster and faster every time I take a breath: “I have to be the best butterfly swimmer in Greece”, the voice inside keeps telling me.

How Can we Push Our Personal Limits?

by Evan Paneras, Middle School Student

At the National Swimming Competition, July 14-19, 2021, Evan finished with a total count of 6 medals

The buildup to the national race was the most intense feeling I can remember this year. Nothing could stop me from reaching my goal. Around three hours of practice per day while trying to give school my 100% effort at the same time, talk about stress!

It was hard for everyone during the pandemic. Everything seemed new and the danger felt like it was everywhere. We could not see what tomorrow would look like.

I came to realize that swimming is what helped me through the difficulties of the lockdown. Although at times, I felt discouraged, disappointed, exhausted and even sometimes felt that my whole body was shutting down, swimming undoubtedly kept me going. do believe that it’s only a matter of time, training and consistency to win the gold because I am motivated, determined and steadfast on attaining this goal.

The pandemic has allowed me to realize that I can overcome any difficulty in life. Whether it be a problem with my friends or family, or even something bigger in the community. These tough situations helped me understand that I need to have the same persistence and consistency with school as I did with swimming. Pushing limits. Overcoming every expectation for my performance. And even though I know how it felt, I must admit that I was not alone on this journey… Me and my friends, classmates and swimmers were in this together, constantly being an inspiration to each other.

It is this the spirit of togetherness that brought us here in friendship and unity.