HIGH SCHOOL VS. CLUB SWIMMING
By Tarrah Smith Media Coordinator

Club or high school? For a long time, swimmers and coaches have debated the merits of both, and which is better. Who says you can't have your cake and eat it, too? Here, two swimmers who have reached the top of the sport-Olympic medal winners Aaron Peirsol and Kaitlin Sandeno-talk about the benefits of swimming both club and high school.
The two agree that while their club coaches (Dave Salo of the Irvine Novas, and Renee and Vic Riggs of the Nellie Gail Gators) developed them into the medal-winners they are, high school swimming provides the team and camaraderie aspect of the sport that isn't quite the same in club swimming.
"Club gives me the competitive drive and the people are more in tune with the sport," Peirsol said. "Not that they don't want to have fun, but they're there because they obviously want to be. With high school it's more laid-back and the focus is more on having fun and on the team, not so much on the individual goals."
Sandeno agrees, and because of the team-aspect of high school swimming, she was inspired to swim in college. This fall, she will be a Southern Cal Trojan.
"I think for college swimming, the difference from club will be that there's such team unity," Sandeno said. "While at USC, I'll be doing the team cheers and wearing the team gear, and I'm really excited to be part of a team.
Peirsol, too, looks forward to swimming in college for the same reasons. "High school swimming is a precursor to college swimming, and they are a lot alike in that they are more team-driven," he said. "I wouldn't want to pass that up in college. It will be really exciting."
Don't mistake their enthusiasm for high school team swimming as an indication that club swimming is second fiddle. It's not. When asked why they swim club, both give point-blank answers: Peirsol, "to get better." And Sandeno? "It's fun, but you're in it to get better."
" [Swimming both] brought together two different aspects to swimming. Club is about working really hard and going for the goals you really want to accomplish, where with high school, it's the other side of swimming. It's really why you started swimming. I think club is fun, but high school is a whole different level of fun. I think it really replenishes you," Sandeno continued.
They both train with their club teams, Peirsol with the Irvine Novas, and Sandeno with the Nellie Gail Gators. Both have also been lucky enough to have high school coaches that are understanding of their situation, and allow them to just compete in the meets without attending the high school practice sessions, which are much shorter and less intense than club training.
Sandeno notes that swimming both for her club and high school teams helps to meet different needs.
"I think for people that are trying to decide whether to swim one or the other, if they can do it, they should swim both. I swim club for the more competitive side of it. [High school] is a great way to give yourself a break and remind yourself why you're swimming."
Originally Published in Splash August 2001 on page 13. If you found this interesting, please read the accompanying articles on the same subject!