Kyle Korvick

Hundreds of eyes fixate on the swimmer as he mounts the starting block. When everyone is in their positions, the crowd falls silent, waiting for the signal — bzzt! His fingertips glide into the water, and he makes calculated movements, coming up for short breaths, then submerging his head back in. As he flashes past his competitors, Miami Palmetto Senior High sophomore Kyle Korvick maintains focus in the pool.

“Whenever I go to practice or to compete, it’s my outlet from everything else that’s going on…and I’m in my own little world,” Korvick said.

Korvick credits his father for starting his swimming career.

“I started swimming when I was about seven at Gulliver’s swim club...my dad kind of wanted me to try every sport to see which one best fit me,” Korvick said.

Soon enough, Korvick realized his natural-born talent for swimming.

“I realized that I was going to be really good at it when I was 12 or 13 because I took a two-year break…then I came back, and I got really good, really fast,” Korvick said.

Korvick decided to swim competitively, showcasing his skill at national-level competitions. At 14, just a year after deciding to compete, he attended the 2018 Junior Olympics, swimming at 4:05.79 in the 400-meter freestyle; he made the Winter Junior Nationals cut, qualifying for a meet with the fastest U18 swimmers at the event.

To train for these competitions, Korvick follows a rigorous practice schedule.

“So usually it’s Monday, Wednesday, Friday. I swim for like an hour from 5:15 to 6:15 a.m. and then everyday after school from 4:45 to 7:30 p.m.,” Korvick said. “It’s really hard because there’s multiple practices a week — some in the morning before school and competitions and stuff like that.”

Though trying at times, swimming keeps Korvick’s determination and passion at 100%.

“There are a lot of moments, especially in practices, that are really hard, and I’m really sore. I just want to forget the day ever happened and go home. But I know that the pain is temporary. That’s one of my favorite quotes: ‘Pain is temporary, pride is forever.’ Because you’ll be hurting now, but it’ll all pay off when you go [to meets] and you’re at your best...it’s all worth it,” Korvick said. “I just love swimming so much. I want it really bad. I don’t know how to explain it, but my love for the sport just keeps me going.”

Korvick’s coach, Michelle Uhle, admires his tenacity for the sport.

“He’s a strong team member; he’s a leader; he’s very dedicated and focused.” Uhle said. “He motivates others by his passion for the sport.”

Korvick’s dedication and talent inspire his teammates, especially Garett Mullins.

“When I get to watch Kyle race, it’s honestly so inspiring because he’s someone who’s so talented, yet is always putting in the work and finding ways to keep improving,” Mullins said.

Amidst his consecutive victories, Korvick faced an obstacle that threatened his swimming career last summer. He needed surgery on his heel. His os trigonum bone did not properly fuse under his heel from excessive swimming, causing damage to his Achilles tendon.

“I knew that if I had just let it stay in there, the longer I kept it in there, the more damage it would have done so I had to get it taken it out and I was out for a summer.” Korvick said.

Being out for so long took a toll at first, but the support from his parents and teamates helped him regain motivativation.

“I had big goals to make Olympic trials, and I felt like missing an entire summer would pretty much ruin my chances. For the first month that I was out, when I was in the splint, I was in a really bad mental place,” Korvick said. “Quite a few of my teammates came over and cheered me up and kept me in a good mental place, and then when I came back to high school season, things just went up from there.”

Since his injury, Korvick continued to push himself. He competed in the Toyota U.S. Open Championship last year in December, where he swam at 4:09.39 for the 400 free, beating college-age students.

“[His dedication] makes me want to push everyone else to kind of get close to his level,” Uhle said. “It’s hard to, because he’s such a hard worker and he’s got a lot of natural-born talent.”

But for Korvick, it’s about more than just the medals.

“It’s definitely character-building as a sport and experience as a whole,” Korvick said. “I’m going to take that dedication and apply it to anything I want to do…in the future.”

Valentina Caceres Sports Editor v.caceres.thepanther@gmail.com Gemma Torras Senior Design Editor g.torras.thepanther@gmail.com DESIGN BY JULIA STRASIUS