Swaim shows skill, speed for success at Gordon Central
Warriors’ senior putting together strong final year, breaking school records
added a second straight win the following week to give the program a jolt of momentum under first-year head coach Cory Nix.
Swaim also gets a lot of his drive and ability from his family where he has several siblings that have come through the Gordon Central program, including his brother Logan, who is a track teammate. He said the competition between himself and his brothers and sister has been fun to be a part of and has made him better over the years.
Recently, the Calhoun Times caught up with Swaim to discuss the current track season, his recent school-record breaking performance, his final football season last Fall, his memories as an athlete at Gordon Central, the influence his coaches have had on him, how competitive he and his siblings are, his future plans and more.
Here’s what he had to say:
CT:
How is track season going so far and what are your goals or expectations for yourself and the team this season?
Track season has been going well. Our sprint coach has been pushing us really hard. He’s been pushing us to our limits. We’ve been doing repeat 400s, repeat 100s, repeat 200s and a mixture of all that. We do yoga before and after some practices and before meets definitely. And Coach Rainwater has been making sure we have everything that we need and making sure we do what we’re supposed to. He checks and makes sure all of our schedules are in check and our grades are in check so we can stay on the team and keep competing. Individually, my goal is to go to State again, but this year I want to go for my three main events, which are triple jump, 400 and 800. And I want to go to State again for the 4x100 and 4x400 relay. As a team, I just want everyone to succeed and
SWAIM:
make sure they do their best. I want everyone to perform to their potential and beyond what they believe they can do. I want us to win as many meets as we can as a team, both boys and girls.
CT:
You recently broke the school record in the 400 meter dash. How much work went into that and how excited were your teammates and coaches when you did it?
I couldn’t believe it. I was just running it with one of my buddies from Calhoun, and we always battle back and forth. He wins some, I win some. We always compete hard but no matter who wins, we always go back to having a good time at the meets and catch up on things. But after we were done with the race, Coach (TJ) Hamilton picked me up and was all excited. He showed me the time, and it was just amazing when I first saw the hand time. And once I saw the computerized time, I don’t even know how to describe it. It was just insane. I thought I’d never do it this early in the season.
SWAIM: CT:
What was it like to be a part of the football team this past season and see how much the team changed under Coach Nix in his first year?
It was really cool to be a part of. We had some really big bonding moments for the defensive backs and as a team. It all started over the summer at the camp we went to. We all
SWAIM:
just came together as a team. Once the seniors got everything together and understood what we were supposed to do and what we weren’t supposed to do, we got the team rolling. After Coach Nix started talking to us more and more, we started to shape up as a team. We all made sure we did our jobs. The seniors knew it was our last season, and many of us knew this was our last chance to play football so we tried to make the most of it. We were all hyped up after we won that first game, and then we got the second one. We weren’t satisfied because we wanted more, but it was a fun team to be a part of trying to turn things around for GC.
CT:
What is your favorite memory as an athlete at Gordon Central?
It would have to be track or ROTC Raiders. Track was when I broke the record and also when I went to State for the first time my sophomore year. Those were some of the best times because we got to bond and have fun with everyone there. For Raiders, it was just everything about it. I’m going to miss Raiders. We have our season in the Fall, and it’s a shorter season, about four or five meets, or two months and we got to State every year. It pushes you to your limit just like track does. It makes you have a strong mental game and really think.
SWAIM: