Swimming Towards Success

Andrea Dworak is undoubtedly Blake High School’s most decorated swimmer, with many state titles, school records, and amazing performances. And the most incredible part is that Dworak is only a junior! She continues to prove that despite her young age, she can still dominate the competition. She was successful as an underclassman last year as well. One recent highlight is that Dworak earned the title ‘Swimmer of the Year’ from The Washington Post.

When asked if Dworak expected to be Blake’s top swimmer coming into the program, she said she knew people from her club swimming team (Rockville Montgomery Swim Club) who have been or were on Blake’s team. So, she had somewhat of an idea of what the team was like, and how it’d be as a high school swimmer. Unfortunately, schools shut down, and her first year on Blake’s swim team was in 2022, the first year back from the COVID-19 lockdown. For many athletes, that eventful year was about getting back into the groove of things and adjusting to high school sports again. Dworak says she didn’t have many, “expectations where [she] fit into the team. [She] wanted to build a community and become a better swimmer.” 

Dworak sets many goals for herself and strives to be the best swimmer she can be every day. She says throughout the rest of her high school career she aspires to “qualify for the U.S. Olympic Trials in 2024, win states and Metros in both of [her] events there, break the remaining records on Blake’s record board, and improve [her] times.” She has a great growth mindset in what she must do to reach these goals, mentioning, “I have to accomplish the small things that contribute to my bigger goals.” But like any sport, you must enjoy it: “I have the privilege to do something that I love and have fun doing every single day, so reminding myself that swimming should be fun is very important to helping me achieve my greater goals.” 

Dworak shares some advice for athletes who just started swimming competitively: “When you get into a routine of going to practice it is sometimes hard to keep track of why you are swimming or why you are going to practice. Having clear goals of what you want to achieve in a certain amount of time can motivate you in practice every day.” If these athletes keep Dworak’s mindset, they will surely find similar success.

Dworak loves competing at meets with her teammates. The meets where everyone supports and cheers for each other. She beams, “My favorite swim meets are always those that have great energy. When everyone is cheering, when it’s super crowded, and everyone is just excited to swim fast.” As a high school swimmer, she says her “favorite meets are always those where the team comes together and we are all cheering. [She] also loves meets where [they] are going against a bunch of schools because [she gets] to see friends and club teammates from those schools.” These exciting meets include the Metros Championships, regionals, and states.

Dworak says she is proud of many moments in her career. However, she always strives for larger goals and wants to challenge herself more: “I am almost never 100% satisfied with my performance.” Moments, where she is most proud of herself, are when she achieves a goal that she has been reaching for a long time or something she never considered doing. She mentions that “at the Metros Championships in 2023, [she] surprised [herself] by winning the 500 freestyle and dropping over 3 seconds in the event.” She says, “I was proud of myself for pushing myself during the race and properly preparing myself for this race.” 

Dworak concludes, “There is always something I can improve on whether that be my race strategy, training regimen, diet, or how I mentally prepare for a meet.” She says that “changing up all of these variables or practicing these different things during practice can help [her] improve race execution and therefore [her] times.”

Thank you to Andrea for this wonderful interview. The Blake Beat cannot wait to see your future success as a Bengal and beyond!!!