by By Dan Ninham
The pandemic stopped world sport in its tracks quickly and also in the swimming pools. Athletes are preparing anxiously for the fall athletic practices to start as well as the school year and are not sure of the future of high school athletics.
The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletics Association announced on July 23, 2020 that low-risk sports, including girls swimming, starts practice on August 17. High-risk sports will start on September 7. The delay of the fall sports was based on the level of contact and risk being infected with coronavirus.
Makenna Winnicki, 17, is a Forest County Potawatomi tribal member. Her parent’s are Ken and Marna Winnicki and the family lives in Rhinelander, WI.
“I played soccer during the school year but my main priority is swimming,” said Makenna. “I am going into my senior year at Rhinelander High School. I have competed at club state meets for five years and at the WIAA D2 State Meet for three continuous years. This past high school season I placed 4th in the 500 Freestyle, 9th in the 200 Individual Medley, my relay team placed 5th and 8th and our team placed 5th overall. We also won the GNC and our respective sectional swim meet.”
Makenna represented Team Wisconsin and competed at the 2017 Native American Indigenous Games in Toronto and medaled in five events. In addition, she swam at the Open Water State and Zones and Speedo Sectionals in 2019.
“I focus on getting good grades and working hard in the pool to make my family, school and communities proud of my accomplishments,” said Makenna.
“My high school coach, Jenny Heck, has been a major influence to my swimming career,” said Makenna. “Coach Heck gave me very difficult and exhausting pool workouts that really pushed my abilities in all of the different aspects to swimming for me to be at the level I am now.”
“Makenna is a very strong swimmer,” said Coach Jenny Heck. “She is well-rounded in all the strokes including distance swims. She has a lot of experience at the state level and leads her team in and out of the pool. She is a team captain for the second year in a row and is knowledgeable about what it takes to excel as a swimmer.”
“Makenna enjoys competition and handles pressure well. These characteristics have contributed to her success at the state level. I am not sure of what Makenna’s plans are for after high school but I’m sure she will be successful in whatever path she chooses,” added Jenny.
“My club coach, Megan Cihla, helped set the foundation for my swimming career,” said Makenna. “Coach Cihla helped me break the mental wall during my early teen years and allowed me to mentally and physically reach my upper level goals.”
“Makenna has been a true mentor and leader with Rhinelander Swim Club over the years,” said club coach Megan Chihla. “As one of her coaches, I’ve watched her grow into a wonderful young woman. She has grown up swimming at the club level. Most times, when club kids get into high school, they stop swimming club. However, Makenna was never one of those kids. Her motivation and dedication to the sport kept her involved. As she got older, she started helping the younger swim club athletes.”
“At meets, she would help kids get ready for their events by giving them motivational tips. She would also help them get to where they need to be. She is oftentimes observed cheering these kids on as they swim their races. She also volunteers to help coach when she can,” added Megan.
“As a coach, I trusted her to coach these younger athletes because she not only knows the content, but she is a great leader,” said Megan. “Makenna would write her own workouts and run her own little practices, showing that she was dedicated to these athletes and our program. Many of the younger kids saw Makenna as a mentor and role model. I have heard many of them say they want to be just like her when they grow up.”
“We don’t have captains at Rhinelander Swim Club, but if we did I know that Makenna would hold that position. She is a valuable member to our program and I’m so excited to see what she does her senior year,” added Megan.
“My mother, Marna, has also been my coach through middle and high school,” said Makenna. “She has been there for all of my achievements firsthand and I have been able to make her proud.”
“Makenna didn’t join swim club until she was about 10 years old,” said mom Marna. “It didn’t take her long before she decided she wanted to be better. She competed in many club and even more USA meets.”
“It has been fun watching her make new friends all over state throughout the years of club swimming and at the last North American Indigenous Games where she earned five medals for Team Wisconsin. She is looking forward to competing at the next NAIG and hopes to again be able to win medals for her team and her tribe,” added Marna.
“A big factor to her making it to high school state swimming meet each year has been the great foundation that began at the Rhinelander Swim Club, with their great coaches, and the fact that she has continued to train all year round since she began swimming over seven years ago,” said Marna. “Since COVID, she has continued training on her own by going to the ‘Y’ even when club was unable to hold practices.”
“Makenna is not afraid to ask her coaches for longer or harder sets,” said Marna. “She has always been very aware of other swimmers in our conference, sectional and throughout the state. She researches teams and times on her own and knows who her competition is likely to be, what their times are and how they swim their races. It helps her to know where she should be during the season, what goal times she sets for herself and how she needs to race in order to reach those goals.”
“It has been fun watching her as a parent and good to know as a coach, that she is a versatile swimmer and can be used wherever she is needed,” said Marna. “As a high school swimmer she has qualified individually for the 500free 3 times, the 100fly and the 200IM and as a part of three relay teams. Her freshman year she just missed the cut for the 200free.”
“Her attitude remains positive during this chaotic and uncertain time. She continues to be a leader among her team, as a two-time captain, by continuing to train hard and motivating her teammates to train hard, in order to help the Hodags continue as conference and sectional champions and to make it back to state in individual and relay events,” added Marna.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made people globally change their daily routine. “I am currently walking, biking and doing workout routines to keep up my training. I am unable to swim since our local pools are closed.”
“Mentally, I need to improve on knowing I can reach past my capabilities and achieve faster times than I thought I could swim. Some mental strategies I use during meets are always keeping myself hydrated. Behind the blocks I like to talk with my competitors, who are often my friends, this keeps my mind from doubting itself. To calm myself when I am nervous during meets I go through a routine of cracking and stretching my joints.”
‘Before the quarantine I wasn’t really interested in swimming during college, but the lack of access to pools has made me miss the sport more than I would’ve realized,” said Makenna. “Now, after not being in the pool after almost five months my mindset has changed and I am considering to be a student-athlete during my college career.”
Photo Credit: Bob Manhardt/Northwoods River News and Marna Winnicki
