By Travis Sloat

For some, being placed on lockdown due to COVID-19 was a curse. Kapaun Mt. Carmel sophomore Jack Judkins turned it into an opportunity to fall in love with three of his favorite sports: golf, tennis, and swimming.

“I fell in love with all three of them in the eighth grade,” Judkins said. “Because that’s what I did when I had all my free time during COVID-19. I’m not currently in a season for school athletics, but I’m doing club swim, and I’m practicing golf and tennis outside school as well.”

As for role models, Judkins said only the best will do, and it’s hard to get much better than an Olympic gold medalist.

“I try to model my swimming game after Ryan Murphy and Caleb Dressed,” he said. “Because Ryan is a backstroke swimmer and Caleb is a freestyle. Both of those guys have influenced how I swim, and if I can one day be as successful as them, I’ll be happy.”

As a sophomore, Judkins will be the first to admit that stepping onto the court or into the pool with the older athletes can be somewhat intimidating, but he said that’s not what he’s thinking about as he gets ready to compete.

“I find it exciting that I get the opportunity to race kids who are older than me,” Judkins said. “That’s how I deal with it. My older teammates have taught me how to balance school with athletics, and that has helped me out a lot too. I hope one day I get the chance to be as good of a role model to others as they have been to me.”

In his free time, Judkins said he likes to hang out with friends the most.