On Saturday, Feb. 17, Niles North hosted the IHSA Boys Swim & Dive Sectional. As a result of some tremendous performances, four North swimmers have qualified for State: senior Ryan Nguyen, senior Jonathon Avram,  junior Robbie Divelbess, and sophomore Connor Niedfeldt. State competition is on Fri., Feb. 23 at FMC Natatorium in Westmont, IL.

Ryan Nguyen

Considering this is your fourth time qualifying for State as a member of the Boys Swim and Dive team, what techniques have you used to be successful?

I would say that we implement many different exercises in our training to improve how we swim in the pool. We spend a lot of time in the water  with different equipment that are made specific to improving our  techniques in different areas  of the body and  changing  the level of power/resistance in our sets.  We also like to  incorporate many drills into our workouts to efficiently move through the water, with each drill focusing on different muscles from how we kick with our legs to how we  pull with our arms to how we even breathe in our strokes.  Working on all areas of the body allows us to minimize any resistance we might have in the pool and be able to swim more efficiently.

What moment or experience in your life first inspired you to start swimming?

My parents introduced me to the sport of swimming when I was around 6 or 7, and I wasn’t particularly interested in the sport itself, since I was more interested in messing around in the pool  with my family and friends. After the first  few years of my parents pushing me to go to many of the practices and meets, I then  started to see my potential in becoming a fast swimmer  and I started liking the idea of becoming one of the best swimmers on the team.  It helped change the way I viewed swimming as a sport as I started taking it seriously  and I was able to increase my motivation to swim competitively with the help of my friends and coaches.

What has been the biggest challenge you’ve faced in your swimming career up to this point?

I think one of the biggest challenges I’ve faced in my swimming career is having the discipline to push myself everyday.  There were  many moments  where I would be presented with the choice on whether or not I take things easy on myself or whether I push myself to my limits, knowing that  I would  have to  put myself in a physically challenging state.  Having the discipline to push myself every single day with every single set would have to be one of the most physically and mentally challenging experiences in this sport knowing whatever decision I make will impact me either in a positive or a negative way.

What advice would you give to those considering joining Swim and Dive as a beginner in the sport?

I would say to just enjoy the sport and the process. Take the time to appreciate and connect with the team and make fun memories throughout your journey.

Besides swimming, what additional hobbies do you enjoy exploring in your spare time?

I enjoy working out  in the gym when I’m not swimming,  I like to spend quality time with friends and family, and I like to play videogames in my free time.

As a soon to be graduating senior, what plans do you hope to pursue after high school?

I plan on majoring in Civil Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and probably go into Construction Management.

Jonathan Avram

When did you start swimming, and why did you stick with it?

I started swimming when I was 7 and initially I mostly just did it for my parents but as I grew up I started liking it a lot and I started to make some really close friends so that kept me close to the sport. Also being pretty good from a young age helped too.

Do you have an idol you look up to? If so, who is it? 

I’d probably say my idol in swimming is Cody Miller. I started watching him swim from a younger age and I always looked up to what he did in the sport and for the sport and not just how fast he was in the pool. 

Do you plan/hope to continue swimming competitively past high school? 

Probably not sadly because I want to focus more on academics, but if the possibility of joining a club team in college arises I would maybe do that.

How did you feel after qualifying for state? What was going through your head? 

Qualifying for state is an amazing feeling, and I think it just meant more because it had taken so long to finally qualify in the 50 free and I was so close in years past. Also qualifying for the 200 free was amazing as well because from the start of the season we knew that the chances of qualifying with the relay we had were really low, so actually doing it was a shock and a great feeling. 

What’s something not many people know about you?

 I don’t really know not gonna lie, but I guess something most people don’t know about me is the fact that I have been swimming for so long and this is my 10th year pretty much swimming competitively. 

Do you have a ritual/routine before you compete? 

My ritual isn’t really that consistent, but for big meets I always do visualization the morning of the meet to get in the right headspace, and then I Also always listen to music before every race just to get me pumped up

Robbie Divelbess

Have you always had an interest in swimming? Where did the interest come from?

I’ve always liked swimming casually, and my dad also swam in college. So when my sister started doing it competitively that sort of pushed me to do it as well.

Who is someone in your life that you constantly push yourself for? In other words, who do you work this hard for?

Probably myself, my parents don’t really care how good I am at swimming. They just want me to work hard. So I wouldn’t say they’re telling me you have to go swim and such. They’re just supportive. So I just try and do the best that I can.

Are there any words of affirmation you say to yourself before you step into anything?  

What I told myself at my last swim meet was don’t go into it with expectations or focusing on time, just focus on details and stuff like that. If you’re just thinking about things like your goal, you’re just gonna get overwhelmed. You just have to focus on what you can control.

How are you feeling? Did you think you would qualify for state? 

That joy has kind of passed over faster than I expected. It was great for a day. Now I’m kind of like what’s next? It was a good feeling when it happened. The people around me thought we were gonna qualify, but I was pretty skeptical.

Is swimming something you want to follow through with? Is this something that you never want to give up? 

I’m gonna give up at some point, maybe in high school or college. I’ll always do it casually because it’s fun to do. You can’t get injured and it’s good for your health. I’m not going to do it competitively, though. 

Connor Niedfeldt

What is your favorite part of being on the swim team? I really enjoy being on the swim team because of the friends that I made and the fond memories that have been created from being on it. 

What are some things you occupy yourself with when you aren’t swimming? Directly after the swim season is the baseball season, which is another sport that I really enjoy playing. I also like to play video games in my spare time, which has been limited due to the fact that I have limited time. 

What motivates you to do well? 

A big motivation for me has been my family and my team. I strive to do my best for them because I want to make them proud and I don’t ever wanna let them down. 

Do you have any advice for anyone considering doing swim/dive? I would definitely say to just trust the process and stick with it, even though it may seem hard at times