By Elan Brewer
I’ve found that after a while proving myself has become a test that I find fun and exciting. At first sight people aren’t expecting much from me. When I walk through the door the other swimmers look at me and they’re already thinking that I’m going to be slow and they’ll be able to beat me. But for me, I just take it all in. And once I step on the block I laugh to myself because they don’t know what they’re getting themselves into. It’s my chance to show them how good I am.
I find it interesting, that I’m the only black swimmer on my team. I generally don’t swim against other blacks. There have been a few here or there. I wonder why more black women don’t get involved in swimming. We’ll participate in track or basketball. Why not swim? Is it the hair thing? Maybe they just don’t know other black women who have done it.
I’m lucky to have met Patricia Jo Oehmke or as I call her Coach Patty. Coach Patty is the first female, African-American swimmer I met. She swam for Michigan State University and had the times to qualify her for the Olympic trials. She’s my idol when it comes to swimming. I was so happy to meet her.
She took my under her wings and taught me about swim and taught me how to believe in myself when it comes to swim. She not only taught me, she encouraged me. After a really bad experience at a swim club, she had to basically re-teach me about swimming.
She’s the best coach I ever had not only because she helped me improve my technique, but because she can relate to me as a black, female swimmer. Without her encouragement and belief in me; I probably wouldn’t have continued to swim.
I now know that as a black female swimmer is I don’t have time to just “lollygag” in practice. I have to work hard because I have to continuously remind myself that I need set straight the belief that I won’t be good. I know that it’s not about the other swimmers, it’s about the clock … getting the best times. This is something I aim to prove every time I dive in the water. This means I have to work on different things (like weight training) to make sure I’m swimming at my best.
I’ve been in this swimming game for six years and I just got my respect when I was on my high school swimming team my freshman year. That’s because I started to prove myself because I wasn’t intimidated by the other swimmers anymore. I kicked butt, took numbers and broke school records.
During the 2007-08 school year, I became the first individual state qualifier on my high school team in nine years. As a matter of fact, I believe I was the only African-American at the Division II state finals. Yes, me … the little black girl. Now everybody wants me on their team.
E’lan Brewer is 16 years old. She is in the Class of 2009 at Waverly High School.