TS Aquatics Swim Team {courtesy}
By: Matt Rothman
The TS Aquatics, which stands for Total Swimmer, is only in its fourth year but is one of the best USA Swimming Clubs in the Florida Gold Coast competing against 60-70 teams around the state.
With swimmers from ages five-and-up, the team had a strong performance with their ninth-place finish in the Speedo Winter Championship in Plantation in December.
They also had an astounding 19 swimmers reach the State Championship for their respective schools in 1A-4A for the competition that took place in Stuart in November.
In January, they participated at the Karl Dalhouse Memorial Invitational in Jamaica — the home country of Head Coach Andre Bailey. He brought 11 athletes where the boys placed 6th, the girls placed eighth, and the team placed ninth overall.
Several swimmers recorded medals, personal bests, and trophies. Aiden Kohanyi received the award for the top breaststroker in the competition, breaking three meet records.
TS Aquatics also traveled to Weston for an eight-and-under meet, as well as a competition in Naples and Coral Springs in February.
Coach Bailey said the swimmers are an amazing group of kids who are extremely smart and well-disciplined.
“They’re some of the hardest workers I have ever been around, and I believe they will be successful in the sport,” he said.
Many of the swimmers attend schools in Tamarac, Coral Springs, and Parkland, many who will continue swimming in college. Kenan Kocoglu committed to attend the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT). Greg Trimble agreed to at Brandeis University, and Emme Ham is set to attend Barton College. They also have three student-athletes competing in college in all different divisions, and Coach Bailey hopes to send 3-5 seniors this year who compete in the NCAA.
There are 120 swimmers on the team, and Bailey has five other coaches who work with the six various age groups. For most of the kids, they spend close to an hour out of the pool exercising by doing jumping jacks and push-ups before swimming for 60 minutes. The older and more experienced swimmers generally practice for two hours in the pool after training.
The team also always honors one of their former swimmers Nick Dworet, who was killed in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas school shooting in 2018.
Dworet became one of the best swimmers on the team and competed for Marjory Stoneman Douglas in the 4A State competition in 2017, finishing in first place. Bailey believes if he continued the hard work, he would have potentially been in the Olympics representing Sweden, his mother’s birthplace, as he was one of the fastest in his age group.
In April, they will be hosting an event called the Nicolas Dworet Spring Invitational in Tamarac, which will continue to honor his legacy.
TS Aquatics will have open tryouts for anyone interested on every Monday-Thursday in Tamarac at the Caporella Aquatic Center from 5-7 p.m. as well as the in North Lauderdale at the Jerry Resnick Aquatic Center from 6-7 p.m.
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