Through all the stress and nerves, the feeling in the end made up for it all. Freshman Skylar Zuleger came into the 2025 YMCA Short Course Nationals knowing what she was capable of and what she could accomplish. During the race, Zuleger was filled with stress and pressure, but once the race was over and she saw her name next to the number one spot, she was overwhelmed with relief. All of Zuleger’s teammates came running to her to cheer her on, making her feel special as she walked away from the event, finishing first in the women’s 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:01.14. Along with this victory, she set three new all-time records at the meet, including the women’s 200 and 100 breaststroke, along with women’s 50 freestyle.
“It didn’t really set in what I had done right away, but as time passed after the race, it began to feel more real,” Zuleger said. “Overall, it was such an amazing experience that I am so grateful to have accomplished.”
Zuleger started swimming when she was 4 years old, 10 years ago. There was never a certain moment when Zulgear started swimming for sport. Like most people, she started swimming in the summer and fell in love with it. She built off those summertime swims and started swimming year-round, continuing to become a better swimmer overall.
Every day, both before and after school, Zuleger pushes hard to get better and achieve many goals in her swimming career. She spends 15 hours or more in the pool total, Monday through Saturday, with an additional 2 hours in the gym. The motivation from her teammates, coaches, and family is constant, inside and outside of the pool, inspiring her to push harder every day. Zuleger’s coaches—her dad, Coach Tak, and Coach Katie—have been supportive and a big help this past season, but her parents have been her biggest motivators and supporters through her entire simming career and have helped her to be in the best position for success. Zuleger also loves her teammates, who have become her friends throughout her freshman year, since they make the season exciting and enjoyable.
Davie swim coach, Tak Hirata, describes Zuleger as one word: driven. Zuleger is one of the most coachable athletes that Hirata has ever worked with, and he believes her motivation and dedication to seeking to become a better swimmer make her special. Hirata respects the mindset that Zuleger keeps, remaining humble and always ready to receive feedback and make changes on even the smallest details lets her improve in many different ways inside and outside of the pool.
Having that mindset of sacrifice and a daily grind is what allows Zuleger to reach the next level in her swim career. She continuously sets goals for herself and is willing to do whatever it takes to reach those goals, which makes her a remarkable athlete and separates her from other teenagers and young athletes.
“At her level of swimming, a fraction of a second makes a difference,” Hirata said. “For those tiny fractions of a second, she is not afraid to put enormous amounts of time and effort, and make necessary life choices and sacrifices that adults often have difficulty making.”
Being a freshman and competing with older athletes makes it hard to step into a role of leadership, but for Zuleger, it comes naturally. She leads the team by example because when others see her talent and hard work, it can lead to how she demonstrates, and it isn’t hard to notice as she leads in the pool and out. She is a big supporter of her teammates by always encouraging and cheering for them. Not only leading by example, Zuleger’s biggest impact on the team is allowing them to believe. No matter the opponent, when Zuleger is in the relay, her teammates believe they have a chance.
“As she grows with this team, I suspect she will be taking more of a direct role in leading the team cheers and pushing others to reach their goals,” Hirata said.
After seeing that Zuleger and one of her teammates, sophomore Zach Hirata, qualified for State Championships, the rest of the team is excited to see how far they can go. Getting close to records that have stood for over a decade has motivated the whole team to get their names on the board. It excites Coach Hirata to see how motivated the team is to reach their goals and see what they will accomplish in the future. As for Zuleger, she is thrilled to see what she can accomplish in her swimming career while she is still in high school and after she graduates.
“I have many goals and aspirations that I would like to accomplish in my future, and I look forward to continuing to chip away at those.”
