What is your favorite memory of the Cedar Park swim team?
A few years ago, the team had a swimmer (Stella Shipps) filming a music video before the state met with a cheesy love song. It makes everyone laugh every year. Last year she gave me permission to continue her tradition. Making a music video was a good way to de-stress before a performance.
How did you start swimming?
I have always been around the pool. My mom (Maureen Koltz) was very concerned about water safety to make sure I could survive if I fell into the pool. I didn’t like swimming until we moved to Wisconsin (at age 8). It was the first place where I learned that swimming can be fun and I can have friends who also love the sport and we wanted each of them to succeed.
Tell me about your training schedule.
So with (Nitro Club) we train doubles on Tuesdays and Thursdays. We start at 5:40 (am) and go at 7:15 and then in the evenings from 5:30 to 7:30. On Mondays and Wednesdays we will train from 17:30 to 19:30 and we will have another 45 minutes of training out of the water. On Friday we train from 5:30 to 7:15, and on Saturday from 6:00 to 7:15 and another 45 minutes to prepare.
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How do you motivate yourself to exercise on days when you don’t feel like swimming?
I have to remember that I won’t feel better in every meeting. If I can train without feeling good, it will pay off in competition. I’m about to break through, which I don’t quite like.
What do you plan to do after graduation?
I enrolled at Rice University and plan to enroll there next fall. I’m going to study something in microbiology.
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If you could have lunch with four people in the history of the world, who would it be?
Of course, Taylor Swift. Then Betty White, Cleopatra and Beyoncé.
Why Betty White?
She lived to be almost 100 years old and must have some wonderful life stories. She is cheerful. I want to know the secret of how to almost live to be 100 years old. I watched The Golden Girls and I really liked it.
Tell me something about yourself that most people don’t know.
I enjoy reading. I think I read The Hunger Games in four weeks. I recently finished a book called “Circe” by Madeleine Miller. I really like Greek mythology and it was a retelling of the Odyssey but from Circe’s point of view. This is probably one of the best books I have ever read.
What do you consider the greatest invention in the world?
It’s kind of a microbiology brand, but I’ll say antibiotics. Just by looking at mortality before the introduction of penicillin, and then at the steep drop after it, antibiotics have saved so many lives.
If you could go to any concert, who would you hear?
It would be Taylor Swift. She writes some of the most witty, smart, punchy lyrics.
Did swimming teach you anything that you apply in your daily life?
All in all, hard work pays off. Pushing something, you might not like it at the moment. Seeing these results pay off is something you will never get used to and will always strive for.
Do you have any rituals or superstitions on competition days?
Yes, I will always eat “Swedish fish” (jelly beans) before swimming competitions. It’s not a healthy treat, but I believe they matter. At the moment I have a huge superstition that I won’t be as good if I stop.
If you could have a vacation anywhere in the world, where would you go?
I would travel around the Mediterranean to see all the coastal areas, learn their culture and of course taste their food.
— Rick Cantu
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