Personal Statement
I am originally Dutch but have grown up living in Indonesia, mainly on the island of Bali. I started to train for competitive swimming at a local swim club about 7 years ago here in Bali but have since spent two years in Jakarta where I was part of the school team of the British International School of Jakarta (where I also completed my IGCSEs) as well as a local club there (JAQ). I then completed my IB diploma as a boarding student in Singapore at the United World College of South East Asia East campus where I swam for the dragons swim team. I graduated from there in May of 2017 with a score of 36 on my IB diploma and am now taking a gap year to build up my training and apply colleges as well as getting work experience and helping my mum out with our two horses.
My main stroke has always been backstroke but I have also been successful as a long distance freestyler in the past. When I was 12 I came 4th at the Indonesian national championships in the 1500m with a time of 20:07.03. Since then I have mainly been focussing on backstroke as a few injuries have prevented me from being able to train long distance properly but this year I am looking to build my endurance as well as improve my other strokes, particularly butterfly as I have been successful in that in the past as well. I have spent many hours working on my basic technique in order to improve my potential in races and enjoy learning the different technique tips of different coaches and adapting them to best suit my stroke.
I am looking to join a college where I will be challenged in and out of the pool by my coaches, teachers and peers. I am open to all types of colleges as my goal is to find a school at which I can achieve the best academic and competition level possible while being in a supportive and encouraging environment.
