It’s never too late to start a sport—Kyra Hughes proves that. Her athleticism, leadership and dedication to swimming have not only helped her improve her technique but have earned her the role of Captain on the Varsity Swim Team.
At 14 years old, Hughes decided she wanted to become more serious about swimming, so she joined a club team. She isn’t on that team anymore due to her busy schedule, but she still manages to find time to swim on her own—a clear demonstration of her commitment.
As a shy sophomore, Hughes signed up for the Varsity team, but it didn’t start the way she’d planned. After an incident on a trampoline, she sprained her ankle at the beginning of the season, which was hardly perfect timing. She felt as if her first high school season had been derailed. However, she wasn’t deterred. When she came back, she’d never swum in a meet before, and she was put in the 100 breaststroke.
Over the past three years, she discovered that she isn’t exactly a sprinter but more of a distance swimmer. She became Coach Cosme Carmona’s go-to swimmer for the 500 Free, which is arguably one of the most difficult and physically demanding events at the high school level. Coach Carmona said that “she’s shown herself to handle the event and never really backed down from any of the competition that she’s faced.”
She understands that while she’s part of a team, the sport can become very individualized. She doesn’t even really like to compete. When she checks her times, sometimes she loses her confidence. Hughes understands that like any sport, it’s just a meet, and it isn’t a big deal if she’s not the first one to hit the wall.
“I used to get really nervous on the block before the 500 and I’d be shaking. When I got older, I just said in my head ‘just get to ten laps’ and it would fly by quickly,” she said.
Hughes may have started late, but it feels like she’s been on the team forever. She’s always at the end of the pool cheering for her teammates and never has to be told to do so. The team has made her more outgoing, and she’s grown not only as a swimmer, but as a person.
“I was really, really shy. I have really great friendships now, but it took me three years to get there and bond with my teammates. Now being a senior, it taught me that the strongest friendships come from not seeing each other for some time and picking up right where we left off, like after the gap between seasons,” Hughes said.
The everlasting friendships that she’s made on the team have made her never want to quit; in fact, so much so that she wants to swim in college. She’s become a big sister to all the underclassmen on the team by being a role model in and out of the pool. She’s shown them that even though they’re on the team to swim, being a good teammate is the most important part.
“She’s always giving me advice, whether it’s about school or swim, she’s a great role model, always paying attention and always on time…she’s just like a queen,” junior Amilia Paredes said.
Because she’s a few months younger than me, I wouldn’t call her an “older sister.” But at 5’7”, physically, she is a big sister to me. We both have red hair, but she’s the better swimmer by miles (or yards), and reminds me of Ariel, the little mermaid, when she swims.
With her shining red hair, she’s not our team’s little mermaid—she’s our tall mermaid. She’s the one that everyone looks up to, in more ways than one.
