Finn McFarland was one of the top 1A/2A swimmers in the state last year as a junior, placing third in the 500-yard freestyle and fourth in the 200-yard freestyle relay with his teammates at state. Now a senior at Anacortes, McFarland hopes to finish within the top two at state this season.
Although McFarland is now one of the best swimmers in the Northwest Conference, he used to be afraid of the pool as a child.
“I was terrified of water when I started,” McFarland said. “My parents forced me to do lessons, and I had to take private lessons with some lady because I was even terrified of the instructors. When I saw the older kids swimming, that made me want to try it and I fell in love with it.”
McFarland first took lessons around the age of 6 and joined the club swim team at 8 years old. He played other sports growing up, including basketball and soccer, but decided to focus on swimming when he turned 12.
“It took a lot of hard work and perseverance to get over my fear and it went up from there,” McFarland said. “There were kids much faster than me and that pushed me to stay in the sport and gave me something to look up to.”
When McFarland joined the Anacortes High swim team as a freshman, his goal was to become a better swimmer than the older kids he admired.
“I would make it my goal to beat them in practice,” McFarland said. “They wouldn’t try at practice but I would be sprinting to catch up to them. It helped me get faster and made me realize that I can be as fast as them one day.”
By the end of his freshman year, McFarland finished eighth at state in the 500-yard freestyle event.
“It was terrifying when I went to state,” McFarland said. “My stomach was full of butterflies. It was worth making it to the finals and getting a medal.”
As a sophomore, McFarland placed seventh in the 500-yard freestyle, 10th in the 400-yard freestyle relay and 11th in the 200-yard freestyle. Besides trying to win another medal this season, McFarland hopes to motivate the future Seahawk swimmers.
“I like to think I am helping other kids and inspiring them to be faster than me,” McFarland said. “Some of them are faster than me now.”
Once McFarland graduates, he will swim at Adams State University in Alamosa, Colorado.
Nick Zeller-Singh is CDN's sports reporter; reach him at nickzellersingh@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 104.
