學生作品 › 5D

Becoming a Good Swimmer

          Since I was in primary school, I have always wanted to learn how to swim. I was watching the swimming competition in the 2021 Olympics when I saw one of our Hong Kong swimmers win. I felt extremely happy that I jumped up and down on the sofa, waving my hands high in the air. Then I made a promise to myself that I needed to learn swimming and help Hong Kong win another gold medal. However, it wasn’t as easy as I thought. On my first swimming lesson, I was very nervous and scared, so I stayed by the side of the pool. When I looked around, I saw many kids my age playing and swimming in the water. They looked happy and excited.  No one was trembling on the poolside like me. I felt really embarrassed that my cheeks went red. However, I still didn’t have the courage to get into the pool.

          My coach saw me and immediately came over. He knelt down beside me and said, “You need to find a different way to help yourself. Being confident is the first step to success. Everyone needs to overcome his/her fear. Imagine there is a tunnel. It is dark at first. But after you climb out of the tunnel, you can see the light.” Then, he put his hand on my shoulders and said, “Come on! You can do it!” After the coach’s heart-warming encouragement, I followed him into the pool.

          When I entered the pool, I started sinking and felt anxious. I waved my arms and legs around, splashing water everywhere. Just when I was about to suffocate, my coach pulled me out of the water. I coughed and spat a lot of water from my mouth. The coach calmed me down and gave me a float. I went back into the pool feeling less afraid this time as my coach was by my side. After using the float for half an hour, my coach started to teach me the basics of swimming. He gently helped me in the water and I kicked my legs. One hour later, I could already swim a little bit without my coach’s help. I was so happy.

          During my practice, I encountered some difficulties. On my fifth lesson, I bruised my legs trying to avoid a baby bird floating on the surface of the pool. I was extremely unhappy and wanted to quit swimming, but my family and my coach encouraged me. They said that the more difficulties I encountered, the more experience I gained. And the more experience I gained, the more I would improve. So after I recovered, I continued to practice swimming. Even when I was very tired, I still didn’t rest or give up. I kept improving every second.

          After practising for six months, I joined a national swimming competition. I was very nervous and felt a bit cold, trembling with anxiety. However, I still had confidence in myself. When I stepped out of dressing room, I heard my teammates, coach, friends and family cheer my name. It made me feel more confident than ever. 1…2….3…Beep! All contestants and I jumped into the pool and started swimming. I was behind all of them, and I started losing my confidence again. But then, I heard a faint sound. Someone was yelling my name! I immediately used all my strengths and energy to swim faster. After a few seconds, there were only two contestants ahead of me. I wanted to swim faster, but I couldn’t. At the end, I came third and got a bronze medal. Although I didn’t get a gold medal, I was still very happy. I screamed so loud that my lungs hurt!

          I learned that confidence is the way to success. Believe in yourself and you can do it. Also, we should never give up on something we want to achieve because nothing is impossible.

Katelyn Chin 5D02