“You have a gift for swimming. Don’t stop here.”
When freshman swimmer Caroline Maki was just 6 years old, her coach expressed these words of encouragement and gave her a participation ribbon after she had just competed in her first swim meet. Since then, Maki has competed in state championships, returned her relay team from last place to first in events, and has now won competitive, collegiate events.
Still, for the majority of her swim career, Maki has had to make sacrifices in pursuit of her passion. Like most swimmers, Maki had to wake up early for practice before school and often stayed after to do the same. As her high school did not offer athletic programs, she would commute to a different high school to swim on their team.
“We had to go back to our public schools in our area,” Maki said. “That was also challenging because I didn’t have a lot of close friends on the team that were from my school.”
When Maki’s club coach, Andrew Beggs, decided to leave the team after a 12-year stint, Maki shortly followed. She suddenly found herself searching for a better fitting program and a coach with whom she connected. As she left her childhood swim-friends behind, she found herself without the stable leadership or camaraderie that usually accompanies organized athletics, a lack that presented unprecedented challenges for her.
“Finding a new team, having to make new friends, getting a new coach and adjusting to that was very difficult for me,” Maki said.
While the turbulent transition was a pivotal moment in her life, Maki was fortunate enough to have a strong support system in her family throughout her entire career, she said. Maki’s two sisters have always encouraged her, and she has also enjoyed the time she’s spent with her two dogs, one cat and Waffles, her hedgehog. But above all, her mom was her biggest fan.
“My mom has always worked so hard for me and my sisters,” Maki said. “She’s sacrificing everything for me to be able to be here, and I’m really grateful for that.”
From placing at the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association State Championships in 2016, 2017, and 2019, to being honored All-American in the 200 Medley Relay, 200 Freestyle Relay, and 50 Freestyle, Maki has had her family right beside her.
However, Maki’s most recent club coach, Jason Brennan, also supported Maki in the later years of her high school career, particularly in helping her through the college recruitment process. He made constant efforts to reach out to different schools and put Maki on their radar.
Now at Emory, Maki is overwhelmed by the support her new team provides. Although she enjoyed her time with her small team of eight in high school, Emory’s team of 80 has been the perfect fit.
“The team is so encouraging in practice,” Maki said. “That’s something I never got to experience in high school.”
Head Coach Jon Howell also feels that Maki has settled into the team well.
“She’s someone who immediately connected with our team,” Howell said. “She learns from those around her, and she’s made such an impact on our team in such a short period of time.”
With the team’s support, Maki says she has also found a home and family. On the swim team, there are family “pods” where seniors are deemed as the “parents” and the freshmen, sophomores and juniors are their “children.”
“[The pods] really helped us connect to the upperclassmen,” Maki said. “We do all sorts of pod contests, and mine won pod pumpkin carving.”
Even though Maki has a designated family within the swim team, she has found role models and idols throughout the program. After having a limited team environment in high school, Maki feels grateful to have such an impressive team both athletically and academically, she said.
“All of the upperclassmen on the team are so inspiring,” Maki said. “They perform so well in the pool and in the classroom, and they set such a great model for us underclassmen.”
Maki’s sentiments are mutual. Fellow freshman swimmer Julia Colizzo said that Maki brings a positive attitude to everything she does and motivates those around her.
“Caroline is always looking out for and supporting her teammates,” Colizzo said. “When she’s not racing, she’s constantly cheering on the rest of the team.”
While Maki has been an exceptional teammate, she has also made her strides as an individual. For the week of Dec. 9, Maki received University Athletic Association Athlete of the Week after winning the 100-yard freestyle (50.47 seconds) at the Denison University Invitational (Ohio).
“She has a very strong desire to get better,” Howell said. “She’s just beginning to understand what she’s capable of doing, and [us coaches] really want to explore that and see how far she can take it.”
Still, without her teammates, Maki would not be the swimmer or person she is today.
“I can’t even put into words how much I love every single person on the team,” Maki said. “Getting up so early doesn’t seem like such a chore because I’m just going to see 80 of my best friends.”
