By Hayden Swope
Andover’s Clark Young is ready to enter the new season with energy and purpose, and a focus on elevating both himself and his teammates for the long road ahead.
“Preparation for the season for me is trying to get my friends and the team as excited about it as possible so the team culture can be even more amazing than it already is,” Young said. “I’ve been working on increasing my strength training recently to get my body more prepared for competitions.”
A long list of goals, both team-centered and individual, are keeping Young driven as he heads into the winter season.
“My number one goal is and will always be succeeding with my team at the state level,” Young said. “On the more individual side I would love to get a state title in both of my individual races this year and continue to improve my breaststroke.”
Young is really looking forward to watching the countless hours of preparation payoff.
“I am most excited for being able to see hard work pay off this season,” Young said. “Whether that be my friends joining my club team and putting in hours and hours to improve during the off season or me doing 12,000 yard IM sets for three hours to cut a few seconds in my 200 IM.”
And when it comes to favorite moments, nothing compares to competing in front of the home crowd for Young and the Trojans.
“Nothing beats a home meet,” Young said. “They possess a kind of fulfilling excitement. I’ve always thought there is power in racing where your roots are, surrounded by the people who’ve helped shape me and are helping shape me every day.”
