After coming seven hundredths of a second short of breaking the record in the 50 meter freestyle, senior Matthew Gibson is determined to get his name on the record board overlooking the Fieldston pool.
“I look at it all the time,” says Gibson. “Everyday I get into the water, I look at the board, and think about breaking a record. Mid-practice when I feel like I can’t go on, I look up there and I push myself to keep going.”
In 1996, one year before Gibson was born, Andrew Schlanger broke the freestyle record with a time of 23.02. For him, accomplishing this task would be a satisfying conclusion to a high school career that was almost never meant to be.
Swimming was never Gibson’s favorite sport growing up – in fact, it took an injured knee and a persuasive physical therapist to make the sport a viable option. “When I was younger, I did a lot of more traditional sports like basketball and football and for some reason I just stopped,” the co-captain says. “For five years I didn’t exercise at all. [In] 7th grade I started getting back into sports but my body couldn’t handle it because I wasn’t exercising and my knees got really bad. The physical therapist said, ‘you should try swimming.’ That’s how it started.”
Although Gibson says his favorite stroke is freestyle, he will always have a connection to the butterfly.
“I have grown to love the butterfly,” Gibson says. “I hated it in the beginning, but after swimming it all these years I have become attached to it. It is the most taxing and physically demanding [stroke], but that’s what makes it fun. If you can compete in that stroke there is a certain pride in it.”
While swimming is sometimes considered an individual sport, Gibson wants to elevate the team’s chemistry and with that the team’s reputation throughout the student body. “I want to help instill a culture that is hard working,” he says. “Unfortunately, for the past couple years our team hasn’t tried as hard as we could. I think an inherent problem with no-cut teams is that we are going to have people there who aren’t going to try. I want to make an environment where everyone is going to strive for victory.”
Gibson hopes the team will gain some recognition for its hard work, and is saddened by his awareness that some members of the Fieldston community don’t view swimming as a “real” sport. “I think a lot of people underestimate just how tough swimming is,” he says. “There are people who understand, but there are some who don’t even consider it a sport. I get that some people think it’s a hobby or an exercise, but it has a competitive nature to it.”
Pam Opdyke, varsity head coach, hasn’t been shy about her high expectations for Gibson. Personally, she believes Gibson can be a record breaker, but his leadership may be just as impactful.
“My expectation of Matt this year is that he will break at least 2 varsity records and be a vital part of all of our success in the pool,” said Opdyke. “Matt is the captain of the team and he is a true leader. He leads everyday in practice through example and by working with the team to push them to their potential.”
