Florine Luminita Chandra

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FLORINE LUMINITA first started swimming at the age of five. Back then, she never imagined that she would turn out to be the athlete she is today since swimming was something she did strictly for fun. Her mom has always played a huge role in Florine’s life as a swimmer as she encouraged her to participate in a sport and there was a swimming team in school at the time. When I asked her if she had always wanted to become a swimmer, she answered with an honest no. She has always detested the multitude of drills and exercises she has to go through but has grown to love the company of her friends in the swim team. Her least favorite thing about swimming is the training, after all.

To Florine, those moments whenever she finishes a race or routine in artistic swimming and realizes that she has made progress, and especially if she wins, are the most rewarding. Moreover, the budding friendships with other swimmers from other teams and countries and all the time she has spent with them always turn out to be the most indelible memories.

How does lifestyle, mindset and choices affect a person’s perception of growth? Florine defines growth as a learning process involving a positive change in her perspective on a certain issue. For instance, she used to think that competitions were such bothersome burdens, but now she sees that they are, in fact, opportunities for her to thoroughly evaluate her skills and work on certain areas that she is lacking in.