Canton senior Hannah Gurgel has made quite an impression in her swimming career, with two KLAA West records in the MHSAA Girls Division 1 state championship. She completed the 200 freestyle in 1:50.07, and the 100 backstroke in 56.80, both second place finishes. Gurgel sat down with The Perspective to discuss the challenges she’s faced while swimming and the goals she hopes to achieve for the rest of the season.
Molly Okon: You’ve been named All-American swimmer and have won several records. What inspired you to start swimming?
Hannah Gurgel: My parents just put me in swim lessons. They thought that that was a valuable life skill, and then I jut joined the swim team and stuck with it since then.
MO: How long have you been swimming?
HG: I have been swimming for, I think 13 years, since I was five.
MO: Do you participate on any other swim and dive teams besides the school team? Or as an individual athlete?
HG: I’ve been on club teams the rest of the year. I’ve been on Drop Aquatics in the winter, and another one in the summer, called Farmington Glen.
MO: Congrats on being named All-American swimmer. What time did you get to accomplish that title and what stroke?
HG: That was at state meet last year, it was the 200 freestyle, and I went a 1:50.07.
MO: At your meet on September 25, you came in first with a time of 1:57.83 on the 200y timed finals freestyle. Did you anticipate this time before you went into the water?
HG: I would have liked to go a bit quicker, because my best time is a 1:50 but it’s a pretty good time for this point in the season.
MO: How do you mentally prepare for your meets?
HG: I just really rely on the work that I put in for training. So I just train at practice and then just rely on those skills that I’ve learned to carry me in races, so I can kinda relax before.
MO: Congratulations on getting recruited for Boston University’s swim and dive team! That must’ve been really exciting. — Tell me about your decision to commit to Boston University for swim and dive. What factors went into making that decision?
HG: I went on an official visit there last spring, and I just fell in love with the camaraderie of the team, along with the campus and the coaches. So I just decided that that was the perfect place for me. I decided that I wanted to go there.
MO: Considering your success with becoming an All-American athlete, what are some other goals you would like to accomplish this season?
HG: It would be cool if I could break another team record, whether it would be probably be one that I already broken, realistically. But it also would be cool if I could win an event at state meets.
MO: Have you ever had some difficulties with holding your breath underwater? How do you build up the skills to accomplish this for your meets?
HG: I’ve been doing it since I was five, so I have a lot of conditioning with that. But in practice, we do certain drills and things for breath holding, like don’t breathe on the first stroke. Like, breathe how many strokes to kind of get used to that.
MO: While swimming, what is going through your mind during a Park rival meet?
HG: They’re really exciting because it’s like your school, but it’s also not, so it’s kind of weird. But it’s really exciting painting the rock because we’ve been Park champs for four years now. We had our Salem meet on Thursday, so that was our fourth time in a row. It’s been exciting being a part of that.
MO: What do you do for fun or to relax when you aren’t at school or swimming?
HG: I really love to paint and do artistic things like that. I’m also really into movies, so I watch a lot of movies and TV shows.
MO: Looking at the experience you have as a swimmer, what advice would you give to someone who is thinking about joining the swim and dive team?
HG: I would say to just remember that your team always needs you in some way. And to just be there for your teammates, and you get out of it what you put into it.
