INTRODUCTION: Anna Cook '21 posted Rochester's best times in the 200-yard and 400-yard individual medley on a grand stage - the UAA Championships. The IM requires swimmers to combine four strokes in one race: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, freestyle. Anna talks about that and how she developed a deep appreciation of swimming in the article below.

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 When did you first become involved in swimming?
I first started swim school when I was 2 because my mom has always been afraid of the water and wanted her kids to be comfortable around it. But I quickly worked through all the levels of swim school and enjoyed it so much that I then joined the swim team right away and started competitively swimming at 5.
 
What attracted you to it?
 I've been swimming for as long as I can remember, so it's really hard to know what initially attracted me, but I have always loved the team aspect of the sport. A lot of people wouldn't really think of swimming as a team sport but all of the teams I've been a part of have been very close. Getting to spend time with people that share a passion for swimming and also are willing to dedicate so much time to it is very special. Even though I've now been competitively swimming for over 15 years, I still get excited and look forward to every single practice. 
 
You swam with the Rochester Orcas at home in Minnesota. Who did the Orcas compete against?
My club team growing up mostly competed against other club teams in Minnesota and Wisconsin. And occasionally we'd travel farther away to Kansas or South Dakota for higher- level meets, but mostly stayed in the Midwest.
 
At the University, you had the best team times at the UAA championships in the IM. How challenging is a race like that?
It depends on the distance. I swim both the 200 IM and the 400 IM and would say for me, personally, the 400 IM is the hardest event. Distance events are usually more exhausting just because you have to push yourself for much longer than sprint events. The only events longer than the 400 IM are all freestyle, so the combination of doing stroke and a long distance makes this event really brutal. Although it is a hard event, I also feel the most accomplished and get the most satisfaction out of doing a 400 IM because I know I have left literally everything I had in the pool and pushed myself to the limit.
 
What led you to compete in the IM?
What sets IM apart from any other event is that it combines all four strokes into one event. This means you don't have to be the best at any one stroke, but at least pretty good at all of the strokes individually. I was always pretty decent at each stroke, but none was super great or super terrible so the IM fit me really well. Plus having good stamina is important for the longer events.
 
Did you take part in any other sports activities?
When I was just starting out swimming I also participated in dance and gymnastics for a while, but swimming is a year round sport that becomes a large time commitment pretty quickly. My team had an attendance requirement and I knew I'd be swimming about 16 hours a week by middle school and over 20 hours a week by high school, so by the time I was 9 I decided I wanted to focus just on swimming.
 
When you are home, do you work with any youth programs – coaching, counseling, serving as an official or a timer? What do you like about doing that?
In high school I would volunteer as a timer at meets for younger swimmers, but now in college I'm not home during the times of year when my team usually has meets. It was great seeing the younger swimmers enjoying the sport so much and was really special being able to give back to the program that has impacted my life so much.
 
What led you to the University of Rochester?
I really liked the open curriculum at Rochester and the ability to be part of a rigorous engineering major as well as be on a sports team and still have the opportunity to go abroad for a semester, which is something I've wanted to do since high school. But when I came on my recruiting visit senior year is when I really knew that Rochester was the school for me and when I decided to apply ED.
 
Why did you choose Biomedical Engineering as your major?
I've always loved science and innovation and knew that engineering was the right field for me. But I'm also really fascinated with the human body and wanted to use my engineering skills to directly help others. I felt BME altogether was the best major for me to accomplish all that. I will be going on to The University of Washington next year to pursue a masters in Prosthetics and Orthotics to become a prosthetic and orthotic practitioner, which has been by longtime dream job.
 
Are you involved in any campus groups tied to your studies?
 I was part of SWE (Society of Women Engineers) freshman year but as I became even busier with academics and swimming, I decided I had to give that club up. But I did really enjoy my time helping put on an event to help get kids interested in the STEM field.