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8 | feature / the standard /march 2020
junior Yaseen El-Demerdash qualifies for Paralympics trials in Singapore this summer
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rom joining the Kansas City Blazers swimming team nine years ago, to being invited to the Worlds Series swim meet in Singapore, junior Yaseen El- Demerdash has had a huge impact on the school’s swimming program. After recently being classified as a para athlete due to his rare condition, Poland’s Syndrome, he has greatly affected the para and non para swimming communities. Being born with Poland’s Syndrome is seen as a limiting factor to one’s physical abilities, but El-Demerdash said he was able to adapt to his condition by starting to swim at the age of 7. “I think going into swimming for me when I was younger, I hated it,” ElDemerdash said. “I didn’t want to do it, because it was difficult.” His mom, Dina Massoud, was the one that encouraged El-Demerdash to swim in order to help him build the strength to overcome future challenges. “I wanted to always set him up for success,” Massoud said. “So one of the things that I thought would really just help him is making his body stronger.” The effects of Poland’s Syndrome vary from one person to another. For El-Demerdash, the right side of his body is missing muscles and bones. Although his physique doesn’t match
that of his fellow competitors, he has managed to excel in his non para swimming. “I’m missing a pec on my right side, a couple other muscles, so my right side is weaker than my left and I’m missing bones in my hand,” El-Demerdash said. Throughout his nine years of swimming, he has been able to adapt to his condition and continue to train as hard as his teammates. Because of the unequal balance in muscle, he needs to overcompensate on his right side.
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He has reached four standards in four different events to be an All American.
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| coacharvelmcelroy
“He’s going up against physically stronger, bigger [swimmers],” Massoud said. “Most people don’t know that he’s working that much harder ... and he’s still competing and beating many of those swimmers.” El-Demerdash hasn’t let his condition bother him in terms of selfconsciousness. Having been recently classified as a para athlete, the doors of opportunity have opened for El-
Demerdash. Former head swim coach and current interim coach, Arvel McElroy said he is impressed with El-Demerdash’s drive and positive attitude toward all that he faces. “I just see him with confidence and drive once he was classified as a para athlete,” McElroy said. “It was like he had some new goals to try and set and to reach.” This year was the first year the national Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association established a para AllAmerican category. “He has reached four standards in four different events to be an All American,” McElroy said. “He has set seven national breaststroke records for para athletes in the last month.” Having accomplished so much in so little time has given El-Demerdash a lot of opportunities to continue competing at such a high level. He is also making advancements in the nonpara swimming community having recently broken the school’s 500 freestyle record. “When it comes to viewing that,” El-Demerdash said. “I view it as just one step toward an end goal.” Even though he dedicates a lot of his time to swimming, school has always been a priority for him. Balancing his schedule between school, swim, and robotics keeps the swimmer busy
