Grace Martin is a junior at The Independent High School where she is a member of the varsity swim team. Martin joined the Wichita Swim Club in elementary school thanks to encouragement from her family.
“I enjoyed being able to have built such strong relationships with my teammates and coaches. We’ve spent hours and hours together at practices, meets, and traveling. I really love the encouraging environment we have built with the help of our coach Katie Idbase because it helps us all to achieve our goals,” said Martin.
A typical day for a swimmer is anything but typical for other high school athletes. Martin, like her teammates, is up early every day around 5AM for practice.
“I am greeted by my team and coach, do a quick temperature check, and we discuss the plan for the week and how we want to approach it. We then stretch out, cap up, and plunge into the cold water which wakes all of us up for the rest of our day. Each day our sets are written to focus on a goal whether its endurance based or technically inclined,” said Martin.
Martin said being a student-athlete at Independent is special thanks to the coaches and faculty at school.
“My favorite part of being an athlete at Independent is the opportunity to achieve excellence in something outside of the classroom. As well as the support my teachers, classmates, and coaches show me each and every day.”
