Swimming is a popular and beneficial activity for the summer. It’s a great way to beat the heat, stay active, and enjoy the outdoors. Swimming offers numerous health benefits, including improved cardiovascular fitness, increased muscle strength, and enhanced flexibility, as well as a refreshing way to spend time with family and “Making a Splash: The Health, Fun, and Rising Competitive Spirit of Swimming in Mississippi”friends. It is also a growing competitive sport in Mississippi for student-athletes of all ages.
The sport of swimming is experiencing significant growth in Mississippi, particularly at the high school and collegiate levels. A 2018 survey conducted by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) revealed that 64 high schools in Mississippi offer swimming and diving programs, encompassing a total of 1,725 swimmers, according to SwimSwam. That number has only grown in the last 7 years thanks to the increasing number of in-state collegiate opportunities student swimmers now have to continue their swimming careers.
For twenty years or more, Delta State University was the only college men’s and women’s swim and dive team. However, today, swimmers have Millsaps College, William Carey University, and Delta State University to aim for, not to mention Meridian Community College, which introduced swimming in 2023, becoming the only community college in the state to offer it as a sport.
To make it to the next level, a swimmer would have to do more than rely on a high school short swim season. While high school swimming may have a shorter season, club swimming, which is often year-round, typically has two seasons: a “short course” season from August to March and a “long course” season from April to August, providing athletes with year-round opportunities to excel in technique and strength in their skills.
The Mississippi Makos Swim Team, founded in 1991, has grown from a team of four swimmers to a state champion team with over 150 competitive swimmers. Now, there are four year-round swimming clubs listed on SportsEngine Motion, including Mississippi Makos, Shockwave Aquatics Swim Team, Starkville Swim Team, and Sunksit Swim Team.
“There’s a lot that goes untalked about in swimming to get you to the collegiate level,” shared Brooks Sipes, a committed swimmer for William Carey University and Senior Representative for Mississippi Swimming. “The mental aspect of sticking with a sport that can get monotonous, and beating the nerves leading up to your races. There is also the strength training, dry lands, and nutrition side of things to make sure you’re fueling and recovering your body properly.”
Sipes started swimming at the age of nine, thanks to her mother encouraging her to try various sports.
“At first, my mom had to encourage me to go to practices,” shared Sipes. “But eventually, I learned to love the sport and stuck with it ever since.”
Sipes began swimming with Shockwave Club in Oxford, Mississippi, and eventually competed for Oxford High School. While swimming provided Sipes a competitive outlet, it also gave her more.
“It helped me kind of find my community of people,” shared Sipes. “It took me longer than most to find my competitive side. I was swimming for fun. I loved the sport. It wasn’t until my first year of high school I thought college swimming would be possible.”
Sipes eventually found that competitive side. After coaches and senior swimmers poured into her and encouraged her abilities in the breaststroke, Spires went on to become state champion for Oxford High School her sophomore year.
“I was like, I’m the state champion,” shared Sipes. “Like, how did this happen, is all I could think. That year, I had the realization that I could pursue this further.”
Sipes is committed to William Carey University to swim in their upcoming season as a student-athlete. Still, she is also committed to being a voice for swim athletes statewide with Mississippi Swimming. Sipes has served as the Junior and now Senior Athlete representative.
Mississippi Swimming, Inc. governs and administers USA Swimming in the state of Mississippi, with Junior and Senior Athlete Representatives who act as voices for swimmers. The Junior Rep is in the first year of a two-year term, and the Senior Rep serves in the second year. These representatives attend important meetings, including the USA Swimming Annual Convention, and provide a platform for athletes to voice concerns and suggestions to the Mississippi Swimming House of Delegates.
“The voice of the swimmers must be out there,” shared Sipes. “I swam with a former Senior Rep, and she encouraged me to use my leadership skills on a higher level to let other swimmers know that their voices matter and can make a real difference.”
During Sipes’s term as Junior and senior representative, she helped organize the All-State Swim Meet, the first of its kind. It brought together swimmers from all the major clubs with different levels of abilities and divided them into teams. This allowed them to swim alongside former competitors and reignite their passion for the sport.
“When I saw all the swimmers intermingling, it was great,” shared Sipes. “Watching them realize that we’re all swimmers and friends and can get to know swimmers from different clubs was great.”
It is never too late for a student to get into the sport of swimming. Many student-athletes don’t find it until high school and can still excel. Parents and guardians should consider local clubs, as most offer pathways to improve student’s skills in the required strokes and build the stamina needed to meet competitive requirements. And it remains the only sport that could save your life by knowing how to be safe in the water.
