“Eat, Sleep, Swim.” This is the motto many competitive swimmers dedicate their lives to, three of them being Trinity swim team captains Adam Bade, Preston Schilling and Thomas Cooper. Swimming moderator of 12 years Mr. Wayne Kraus described the captains as “fantastic. They reflect a model for what a coach would want a captain to be. They lead by example, and the rest of the team follows a good work ethic and good sportsmanship.” Trinity swimmer Josh LeClair said of the captains, “They are well fit for their jobs.” Fellow swimmer Daniel Whitehead agreed. “They lead by example,” he said. “They are positive individuals and have good attitudes about Trinity.” Whitehead praised Schilling’s leadership: “Before important meets, Preston will give motivational or ‘pump-up’ speeches.” Bade’s swimming philosophy is to do his best. “You’re going to get what you put into it,” he said. “If you cheat the workouts, then you’re just cheating yourself.” As a captain, Bade’s main focus is on the team. His favorite event is the 400 free relay and prefers the team event over individual races. Bade has been swimming since he was four years old. He participated in other sports like baseball and soccer in grade school, but swimming has been the main constant in his life. Bade swims Monday through Thursday every week from 6-7:15 a.m., except on Wednesdays when he gets to sleep in a little later, practicing from 6:45-8:00 a.m. Just waking up early in the morning is one of the biggest struggles for Bade, but balancing school and swimming is not too difficult for him. He said, “It’s not as bad as you would think. First few periods I’m pretty alert, but it gets pretty tiring by the end of the day.” Bade is a down-to-earth swimmer with his ultimate goals being “getting a good workout and being part of a solid team. It’s more fun going to meets and practices because teammates make them fun. It’s a good atmosphere.” Schilling’s goal is to “train as hard as I can.” He works to be a role model for the rest of the team. “I am a role model with my hard work ethic in the pool,” he said. “As a captain I also provide team camaraderie, as well as someone they can look up to.” Schilling primarily practices with his U.S.A. swim team, Lakeside. After swimming and lifting weights during the week, the only day Schilling gets a little break is on Sundays. He said all swimmers love tapering, which is something his team does two weeks before big meets. This is a reduction of practice volume and a focus more on quality. Schilling admits to shaving body hair t o reduce drag in the water, a common practice for swimmers before important meets. Schilling practiced twice a day every day this summer. He thinks his team is ready for the regional and state meets. “The team has done really well,” he said. “They have been training hard, and I have been pleased with the performance at meets. They have definitely been getting better as the season progresses.” Schilling has big expectations for himself and the team at state. He said, “Individually, I want to win the 100 breaststroke and win all of the relays I am a part of and do as well as we possibly can. Our likelihood to beat St. Xavier is really low, but I do think we have a good chance to get individual wins at state.” Schilling’s motivation for swimming comes from a desire to be healthy and to get the best college scholarship he can get. He earned a Scholastic All-American award sophomore year; this award recognized his successes in the pool and in school. Swimming in the Junior Nationals was a highlight for Schilling. With success comes struggles. Schilling commented on the difficulties of competitive swimming: “It gets to be monotonous with swimming before and after school, and homework tires me out. It’s a really hard sport. Eat, sleep, swim — that’s all I do.” Like most student athletes, Schilling struggles with balancing swimming and school work. “It’s a struggle but block scheduling helps,” he said. Schilling’s ultimate goal is to swim for a Division I university. His top choices are the Air Force Academy, the University of Kentucky, and St. Bonaventure University. Schilling is not against the idea of swimming in the Olympics, but he is realistic about the chances of doing so. “At this point in my life, I probably am not going to swim in the Olympics, but I have a lot of years left of swimming, and I’m not sure where it will lead me.” Schilling’s favorite event is the 100 breaststroke and least favorite is the 400 individual medley, a demanding event; the last time Schilling swam it, he almost blacked out from the intensity. Cooper’s swimming philosophy is simple: “The harder I work now, the less pain I will experience during the race. Working hard gets easier with time, especially with the mental aspect; it gets easier to push yourself beyond your comfort zone.” Cooper is the junior captain and has been swimming competitively since the age of five and has not stopped since, except for a two-year gap at the age of nine through 11. Cooper has an impressive record, winning the 50 free and placing second in the 100 free in the state championship his freshman year and then winning both events his sophomore year. As a sophomore Cooper earned two national titles, in the 100 and 50 free, and also made it to the finals of the Junior Nationals. Cooper primarily swims with his U.S.A. team, the Tritons, and like Bade and Schilling, he has an intense swimming regimen. Cooper swims nine times a week. “One thing about swimming is you have to break yourself down and build back up,” he said. “Mentally, it’s difficult to withstand that, physically breaking down. You beat the strength out of you, hit rock bottom and build back up.” Cooper said the volume of swimming is the greatest during “Christmas training,” during which he swims 12,000 to 14,000 yards each day; after that there are fewer yards and more intensity. Cooper has surpassed one million yards this season. Cooper’s biggest obstacle is not having enough time in the day to practice. He said, “There’s only so many hours in the day I can practice while attending school.” Cooper also struggles balancing school and swimming. “I have to get all my homework done at school, or I generally stay up late at night doing homework. I keep a very strict calendar and do major projects and assignments over time.” Cooper attributes his academic success to his organizational skills and jokingly said he’s organized to the level of compulsion. Cooper’s favorite events are 200 and 100 free, and least favorite, like Schilling, is the 400 individual medley. Cooper’s aspirations after high school are to swim in college and one day swim in the Olympics. Kraus, who leads the team with coaches Kelly Horell, Scott Paulson — who has coached Cooper for 12 years — and Jack Grigsby, believes the team will succeed this year in the state meet: “We are a strong team, have three of the top 10 swimmers in the state, and have a nice supporting cast that will score for us. It’ll be a battle for second place with Covington Catholic at state. Within the next couple of years, we would like to win a relay, which Trinity hasn’t d one since the 1970s.”