Ssenior Christopher Hargraves broke the 50m Freestyle, school record of 24.60 set by his uncle Bubba Pruett 19 years prior, by three milliseconds. Achieving his goal of two years, Hargraves has cemented himself into school history Tuesday, Dec. 10.
“This year felt like I had something to lose. I was so focused on beating that record and putting in all the extra effort in and outside school. Finally getting the record is honestly the best feeling I’ve had in a while; actually no, the best feeling I’ve ever had.”
Hargraves threw himself deep into swim training ever since beating graduate Marko Elvira’s time last year; attending practices held as late as 8p.m on school nights all the way into the summer. That work paid off this meet, but Hargraves was firstly faced with disappointment. In the solo 50m freestyle, came short with a 24.85.
“I was so close yet so far,” Hargraves said. “It was so hard for me to imagine that I might not get it. And I feel like that’s what really pushed me when eventually the time came for the 200 relay.”
An hour later into the meet, Hargraves disappointment was gone; replaced with cheers from his teammates after the 200 Freestyle Relay. The 200 Freestyle Relay was his second chance, it is a 4-person team event, each swimmer swims a 50m Freestyle, it was this event that Hargraves made history.
“Initially, I didn’t think I was going fast, I actually felt like I was going really slow,” Hargraves said. “I felt like I didn’t do good, and then I looked up and saw the time. Everyone and my Coach was like, ‘You beat it! You beat it!’ It was an awesome experience.”
Swim coach Chase Crampton, who introduced Hargraves to swim, has been along for the whole journey, even serving as his summer coach. His first impression of Hargraves he described as just another un-athletic nerd. Now after two years of training with him, Crampton couldn’t be prouder.
“(My initial reaction to the record being broken was) disbelief and then immense pride and happiness, not only for me, but for him,” Crampton said. “I know how much it meant to him to break that record. To see such large bounds of improvement in one person in such a short amount of time. You know, it’s not only great to see for him, but also from a coach’s perspective gives me a boost (of credibility) since I helped him achieve this. I am very proud.”
Mentioned in the previous article, Pruett previously said Hargraves has even more potential than himself. Pruett set the school record after only one season of experience; with two under Hargraves belt, he envisions his nephew going beyond that.
“I’m extremely excited for him,” Pruett said. “I know he’s been pushing himself really hard to get to this point, and I couldn’t be prouder of him. He seems to really enjoy it, so I hope he can get the chance to swim in college.”
As a senior, Hargraves hopes those that come after him make it a goal to top his record.
“Hopefully everyone will be motivated to improve their times after I showed it’s possible to beat a record,” Hargraves said. “I know some people are already saying, ‘Hey, I’m gonna beat your record,’ and I hope they do. It means our swimmers are faster and we have a better chance against everyone else in our district; I think that’s awesome, that’s what I want.”
