Clinton Sharks season is underway
The Clinton Sharks swim team is at the halfway point of its season and enters the busiest part of the schedule.
The Sharks are a recreational swim team based out of Anderson County, where Coach Mark Majors looks to teach the essentials of competitive swimming.
The team currently has one meet in the books for the 2022 season, where the Sharks came out on top at the Arnstein Jewish Community Center vs. the AJCC Smokin’ Salmons.
The Sharks have a smaller team than usual due to the pandemic. Coach Majors gives credit to the kids and parents for their hard work in bouncing back to be able to continue competing.
“I want to thank the parents; there is no way that the swim team could make it without them,” Majors said. “To put together a meet, it takes anywhere from 12 to 15 parents to actually run it. There are so many moving parts, and we could not do it without their support.”
Since becoming the coach in 2020, Majors has seen great improvement out of his kids.
“The goal as a swimmer is to cut down the time of their events,” Majors said. “All of the kids have timed out better than they had at this point last year.”
While he is proud of the team as a whole, kids such as Theo Bolstrom have stood out in terms of rapid growth, Majors said.
“Theo started swim lessons with me last year,” Majors said. “Now, he has advanced to the swim team this month. Theo has gone from swimming with a life jacket on in swim lessons to competing in the 25-freestyle with a disability. I am very proud of him, and he’s come so far.”
Majors also mentioned that Thomas Cox’s improvement stood out, but the rest of the team has made great strides as well.
Although swimming is generally an individual sport, the Sharks have found a way to embrace the team aspect of their swim meets. All swimmer contribute points to the team overall based on their performance.
“Each member cheers on the next, and there is great camaraderie; they all just get along very well,” Majors said.
The Sharks will travel to Springbrook Pool in Alcoa for the Smoky Mountain Invitational on Saturday, July 9.
They will then host Rockwood on July 15, before concluding the season at Allen Jones Aquatic Center at UT Knoxville.
