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LDS High School Swimmer Succeeds with Busy Schedule
LA PLATA, MARYLAND -- Jonathan Michela's whirlwind schedule begins at
4:50 a.m. each weekday. Smelling faintly like the chlorinated pool he
emerged from only hours before, Michela, a Mormon, rolls out of bed
to prepare for an hour-long religion class that starts at 6 a.m.
"Chill out" time, an entire 45 minutes of milling about at home, does
not come until 2:30 p.m. -- after the junior has completed a full day
of high school.
Then it's time for swim practice, which on Thursday night doesn't end
until 10:30. The teen typically practices a total of 14 hours per
week at the College of Southern Maryland pool. He swims for the
Potomac Raiders Swim Club, a year-round swim team, as well as the
McDonough High School Rams. Michela, whose specialty is mid- to
long-range freestyle events such as the 500, has provided consistent
first-place finishes and has only two losses in the past two years
for the Rams.
Saturday is the young man's "sleep-in" day. He doesn't have to get up
until 5:15 to get ready for meets and practices.
Although he could spend even more time improving in the pool, the
teenager is more concerned with completing a project to become an
Eagle Scout. He attends Scout meetings on Tuesday evenings at his
church in lieu of attending swim practice.
Source:
Michela Races the Clock, In and Out of the Pool
Washington Post pgSM11 27Jan02 S2
By Will Toussaint: Special to The Washington Post
McDonough Junior Has Busy Schedule
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