Channing Daniel is a sophomore swimmer for the Penn Girls Swim and Dive team. In elementary school she joined her best friend at practice for bring a friend day. Her friend’s mom was an Olympic swimmer who encouraged her to join swim, and shortly after she went to practice, Daniel joined the club team. Ever since joining Daniel has had a passion for swimming continuing her career to now participating on the high school team.
Daniels’s biggest challenge is staying motivated and not doubting herself, swim is a hard sport both mentally and physically. Many times after meets she feels she didn’t do as well as she hoped she would even though she puts in hours of practicing every day and week. She knows she’s worked hard to improve but when she doesn’t meet her self expectations it’s hard to not think about that during other meets.
Daniel said, “The mental aspect of swimming is still something I struggle with but the easiest way to overcome it is to trust the process and realize there are so many more opportunities to come.”
Daniel’s greatest motivation is the sense of accomplishment she feels when she improves. Knowing that all of the time and hard work she has put in has paid off makes her want to keep going to not lose that feeling. Another thing that motivates Daniel is the ability to make her family proud. Knowing that she is a role model for her siblings makes her want to continue to grow not only as a swimmer but as a human being as well.
Daniel said, “One of the best feelings is walking away from a meet knowing I’ve done my best and that all of the 4 AM wakeups have been worth it.”
Even when Daniel doesn’t have her best meet her teammates and coaches are always there to help her move on, help her on future meets, and remind her she can do better next time.
Daniel’s teammates see her as a kind person who is always willing to put in work to improve in order to help better the team. During every meet, Daniel cheers on her teammates, and during every practice, she always makes sure to ask everyone how they are doing.
Daniel’s teammate and friend, Molly Barnes said, “I would describe her personality as caring, nice, and reliable. No matter what she has gone through she always is there for all of us.”
Daniel has a strong support system, her teammates and her family are always there to support her. Her dad is a coach who always finds ways to connect his coaching skills to swimming to push her to reach her full potential. Daniel’s mom shows up to every meet despite all that’s on her plate. Her mom greets her with a warm smile after every practice asking how it went. Daniel has such a strong bond with her teammates she considers them her best friends even outside of the pool.
Daniel said, “After a race, they always congratulate me even if I had the worst swim of my life and I couldn’t ask for a better team.”
