Anya Goeders began swimming when she was six years old. Now she competes with the USA Junior National Team and ranks as the 24th fastest 50-meter freestyle completed by women in the country. The 2020 Olympic games are in her sights.
Anya’s parents signed her up to swim at the Crown Point YMCA eight years ago. “I just thought it was fun in the beginning, being with other people and learning together.”
Her hobby became an extracurricular when the Lowell Swim Club sent out recruitment invites to students in the school district. Anya was eager to sign up. Her mother swam in high school and in college and her older sister performed gymnastics. Athletics runs in the family.
A teammate’s mother mentioned a private club to Anya’s father. MAKO, named for the fastest species of shark, is a private swim training group that meets at the Valparaiso University pool five to six times a week. The schedule is intense, but Anya continues to hone her skill. “I enjoy it because I like to see myself improve. And competing with others is cool.”
Coach Jared placed the swimmers into four divisions based on their age level. Anya is in National Development, a group of six kids who are being trained with the Olympics in mind.
This year Anya qualified for the 50-meter freestyle Olympic Trials with a time of 25:52. She is the 3rd fastest in this category, for the 13-14 age group, in the history of female US swimmers. In all age groups, she is 105th in the world. Her quick times won her first place at State level events and third place at the Junior National’s San Antonio meet.
USA Swimmers collects the times for all swimmers in the country. Anya was invited to swim for the Junior National Team because of her performance.
“Swimming takes up a lot of my time,” Anya explained, but the teenager has still found opportunities to volunteer in her community. She has helped out at a Crown Point neighborhood as well as completing tasks at a personal level for the people in her neighborhood. Lowell High School likes to see its students take an active role in town.
“I think the overall culture and enthusiasm our school gives off is pretty cool compared to other schools,” Anya said. She enjoys the computers the school uses for innovative learning techniques. Every student is issued a laptop to use through the academic year. It is a new way of learning that utilizes her generation’s passion for electronics.
Anya plans to go to college in California after high school in Lowell. Universities on the West Coast, such as Stanford, have a reputation for producing Olympic Medalists. Their teams even have Olympians still on them.
You may see Anya at the 2016 Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. If not, her continued dedication to the sport of swimming will take her to Tokyo in 2020.