How I got a D1 Swimming Scholarship
The Swimming Journey That Led to a D1 Swimming School in the U.S.
Get a unique glimpse into D1 swimming with Keystone Sports ambassador Helena Robla—a D1 swimmer and journalism student at Northern Arizona University. D1, or Division 1, is the top level of college athletics in the NCAA system. Read Helena’s inspiring story of how she went from childhood swimming lessons to discovering college swimming and securing a D1 swimming scholarship at a U.S. university!
Last week my swim team had a meet in New Mexico. We had to wear competition suits instead of our regular suits that we usually wear for dual meets earlier in the season. These suits are pretty expensive and usually wear out pretty quickly, so most swimmers use their newer suits for the most important meets of the season. I didn’t want to use my newest suit, so I grabbed one from the team locker room – when swimmers on our team graduate and know they’re not going to continue swimming, they usually leave their racing suits for other swimmers to use.
The suit was an old Speedo model, solid black except for the straps and one of the legs, which were bright pink. The second I saw it, I knew exactly what kind of suit it was. It was the suit I had dreamed of wearing when I first fel in love with competitive swimming; the suit that my idols like Mireia Belmonte wore; and the suit that the older girls on my club team wore to meets that I hoped one day I would get a chance to compete in.
Before the meet, I showed the suit to my coach and said, “if I could call my 12-year-old self right now and show her that I’m racing in the USA and I’m wearing this suit, she would be so excited that she probably wouldn’t sleep for a week.”
It’s definitely been a long journey to get to where I am today, on a swimming scholarship in the U.S., studying and competing for Northern Arizona University (NAU). Let me tell you how it all happened.
Turning Swimming Lessons Into Competitions and a Passion
I started swimming when I was only one year old and kept doing swimming lessons till I was seven. To be honest I hated those lessons, but, after doctors suggested I keep on swimming to help with the scoliosis I had, my parents decided to sign me up for my local club team instead. I was instantly hooked.
I wasn’t too good when I first started, but, as I started to get more into it, I also started to see some results. I switched teams from my local club team to a bigger team in the city where my grandma lived when I was 12. That season I qualified for my first age group national championship.
Getting to practice from home was an hour-long drive, and my parents would drive me every day they could. If not, I would have to practice on my own at my local pool. They took turns driving me to practice every week for three years. I would take naps, eat dinner, and study during those car rides.
What Led Me to College Swimming in the U.S.
As I got older school started to get harder and I realized I couldn’t keep up with that routine. So at 15 I applied and got a scholarship at a sports technification center. I was there for my last three years of high school. I lived with other swimmers and we would all practice and go to school together during the week, and got to go home on weekends.
Around that time I was already thinking that moving to the U.S. and swimming in college might be something I would want to do. We had some older swimmers in my club team that had studied in American universities, and some that were still there and would fly back to Spain to come to national championships with us. They al had so many great things to say about their experience that they made me want to go there myself even more.
How Keystone Sports Guided My D1 Swimming Recruiting Process
When I was 16 Javi, from Keystone Sports Spain, reached out to me during a national championship meet. He told me that with my times I would most likely be able to get a scholarship at a d1 swimming school in the U.S.
We had a meeting with my parents and talked about how the recruiting process works and how they would help me find a school that suited me. It took a while to convince my mom, but she ended up realizing how much I wanted to do this and how great of an opportunity it was. I started working with Keystone Sports Spain and one of their sports consultants, Diego. I began my recruiting process the summer before my last year of high school.
It was a bit daunting at first, but Diego helped me create a profile to send out to college coaches, a highlight video with some of my races, and helped me draft emails I could send to introduce myself to the coaches who showed interest in me.
As he sent out my profile, coaches started to reach out. From there I started to talk to them through email and then started to have some phone calls and Zoom meetings with them. I was a bit nervous for the first couple of calls, but after getting to know the coaches and knowing what to expect from the calls it started to be a lot casier.
Preparing for the SAT and TOEFL
While I was still talking to different schools and coaches, I started preparing for the SAT. This is a crucial step in the recruiting process for college swimming, as many universities require standardized test scores for admission and scholarship eligibility. The test is split up into a math section and a reading and writing one. I was a little bit nervous before this exam because I had never taken a similar test. But I found a lot of online resources to help prepare for it and even took a lot of practice tests before through the official College Board website, which helped me feel ready.
The other exam I had to take was the Test Of English as a Foreign Language or TOEFL. This test is split up into four parts that test your reading, listening, speaking and writing skills. There were also plenty of resources online to help prepare for this exam.
The Importance of Swim Coach Connection in the University Decision
Swimming scholarship money, the academic programs and majors the schools offered and the location definitely influenced my decision and college recruiting process. But the one thing that I think ultimately made me decide to go to NAU was the connection with coach Andy. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to actually see what any campus looked like till I was already there. The same thing went for meeting my teammates, professors, and everything else. The only thing I knew I would be able to know before getting to whatever university I ended up choosing was how I felt about the coach.
Some college coaches would seem genuinely interested in getting to know me as both a person and an athlete, and Andy was definitely one of them. He reminded me of my coaches back home and from our conversations I could tell I was going to like his coaching style. I was hesitant to commit to a school, but, the second I did, I knew I had made the right decision.
After making my decision al that was left was filling out the paperwork my university required and applying for my student visa. Thankfully, Diego was there to help with all this and made it all much easier!
Take the First Step Towards a Swimming Scholarship with Keystone Sports
If you want to turn your passion into a swimming scholarship opportunity in the U.S., just like Helena, Keystone Sports can help make it happen! Our experts successfully place swimmers in all college divisions, including NCAA D1, D2, D3, and NAIA. We’re here to guide you every step of the way.
Fill out our assessment now and receive a free evaluation of your college swimming scholarship opportunities!
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