For the Tribune
Sam Freeman tried baseball and soccer during his early years in elementary school but wasn’t having as much fun playing those sports as he
had hoped.
“They didn’t really work out for me, so I started swimming in fourth or fifth grade,” Freeman said.
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Swimming stuck with Freeman. The senior has competed for the Seymour swimming and diving team for the past four years.
Freeman said he has been a freestyler throughout his career.
“I mostly swam freestyle. I did swim other strokes, but mostly freestyle,” he said.
During his freshman year at Seymour he concentrated on the 500 freestyle and a leg in the
200 free relay.
This winter Freeman’s main individual events are the 200 and 500 freestyles. Freeman also swims the 200 and 400 freestyles.
In his sophomore year, Freeman advanced to the sectional finals in
the 200.
His career best in the 200 is 2:12, and his lowest 500 time is 5:50.
Freeman hopes to get close to two minutes in the 200.
“I think I’m capable of a 5:43 in the 500,” Freeman said. “I think I like the 500 a lot better. I mostly go hard on the first 50, and then I’ll start pacing myself throughout the rest of the race.”
“The end, when the red (card, held by a teammate at the end of the pool) finally shows up, that’s good. That is when you start to get tired. You want to finish strong.”
Freeman said he thinks the start, and first 25, is important in all races.
“The turns are pretty important,” Freeman said. “You don’t want to foul up or mess up on the turns, and you don’t want to wait too long to push off.”
The 200 free relay comes right after the 500 freestyle, so Freeman does not have much recovery time between events. He said he likes the boy-girl setup so he has some extra time between those races.
Freeman said he prefers the 200 free relay over the 400 free relay because it’s a shorter race.
Under coach Dave Boggs, Freeman takes his practices seriously.
“Practice is very important,” Freeman said. “I look forward to improving on my times and being the best I can be. I look forward to the meets.”
The swimmers have workouts three mornings
a week.
“On Mondays the girls do weights, and we do P90X training,” Freeman said. “On Wednesdays we switch, and on Friday’s we both swim. You really have to be dedicated to come in three mornings a week and practice after school.”
The senior prefers the night meets over the Saturday morning meets, although he said he enjoys the big meets like the “S” Invitational, Hoosier Hills Conference and sectional.
“I like the bigger crowds and seeing more teams,” Freeman said.
At the end of the season, the swimmers will taper, and Freeman looks forward to it.
“Our muscles are more relaxed, and we’re more prepared for the big meets, especially the conference and sectional,” Freeman said.
Freeman, at 6-foot-5, is the tallest member of the team. He said he uses his height to his advantage to get down the pool quickly.
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Parents: Lisa and Randy Freeman
Sibling: Lee
Sports: Swimming, 4 years
Athletics highlights: Advancing to sectional finals in 200 freestyle during his sophomore year
Summer program: “It’s a little bit longer and it takes a while to get used to (the 50-meter pool at Shields Park). I like the shorter course.”
Favorite away pool: Floyd Central
Organizations: Band
Attending SHS: “I like it here. I’m taking (AP) environmental science this year. I really enjoy racing. I think I’ll remember everybody and everything about this team and all the friends I’ve had.”
Plans after high school: Attend Indiana University, study marine biology
Favorite TV show: “House M.D.”
Favorite movie: “King Kong”
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