Renton’s last boys swim meet was Saturday, February 2nd. Now that their season has come to an end, let’s get some insight on what these students had to go through.

Swim is a highly competitive sport that requires muscle components throughout the whole body in order to move through the water. Experiences vary through students on the team. Some have been swimming since they were just small kids while some have found their love for swim just recently. Renton students are very diligent swimmers and headed to leagues. Some swimmers made it to the district and some even qualified for State. Throughout December 4th to January 24, the boys swim team had won 7 out of 11 meets! They proved that hard work really does pay off.

However, there is more to this story than people can actually see. Most students who do sports in high school find difficulty balancing their sports careers and education at the same time. But, there is something different about swim that makes it different from other sports and has a huge impact on students. There is no pool at Renton High School so swimmers have to travel all the way to Hazen high school, dealing with harsh after school hours.

Renton High freshman, Kirby Nguyen said,

“We get out at 5:30 pm or 6:00 at the latest, not including transportation and changing into street clothes from Hazen. However, I make it work and am fully dedicated to school.”

Even with this issue, students like Nguyen are still able to persevere and keep up to date with their education. After leaving Renton through bus or car at 3:00 pm, the swim team usually start warm ups roughly around 4:00 pm at Hazen High School. Then, the team transitions to technique training and lastly, end their day with diving from the blocks.

Despite the challenges, these amazing students are able to pull off the struggles and give it their all when they swim and represent Renton High School. People of Renton need to come together and help solve Renton High’s pool issue. One thing people can do is to help fund-raise for a pool in the near future to help out these hard-working swimmers!

Sources: Kirby Nguyen