Pushing against the block, sophomore swimmer Rowan Cox lunges into the pool instinctively and powerfully propels himself forward through the water. Reaching the opposite end of the 50-meter pool, Cox turns with unmatched technical efficiency knowing the 100-meter butterfly race is defined by his ability to endure the second half of the race.

Conscious of the onslaught of encouragement offered by his team, Cox wills himself to swim faster. Lunging forward with his fingertips, Co touches the wall and breaks the surface of the water to see his name listed as the 2023 Junior 100-meter butterfly champion.

“At first, I didn’t believe it,” Cox said. “I’m going to be honest, I was shocked. I didn’t go in expecting that I would even be in the top eight, and it was just crazy that I won. I didn’t believe that I won for a solid two weeks.”

Held in Irvine, California, the 2023 Speedo Junior National Championships boasted the most talented youth swimmers in the nation. Beyond winning the 100-meter butterfly, Cox competed in five relays and four additional individual races, including the 200-meter butterfly.

“200-meter butterfly is probably the hardest event in swimming, other than open water racing,” Cox said. “I knew that 100 ‘fly is more of my strength, so I didn’t panic when I didn’t get the result I wanted in the 200. I used to freak out after not doing great, but something just clicked for me and I managed to stay calm and pull through in the 100 ‘fly.”

Even though he was unable to finish as a front-runner at nationals, Cox managed to shave six seconds off his 200-meter ‘fly time over the course of the season. Because of this, Cox attributes his success in the 100 meters to his dedication to improve in the 200-meter race.

“I’ve never really trained for the 200 butterfly, but I realized that if I want to be a really good butterfly swimmer, I’d need to improve my stamina through the 200 ‘fly,” Cox said. “I started to put in the work in practice, and at Nationals I finished the second half of the 100 ‘fly a second faster than last year, which I credit to the endurance I got from training the 200 ‘fly.”

Cox traveled to Southern California with a team of the most elite swimmers in the greater Austin area. Tristan McCain, a sophomore at St. Stephen’s Episcopal School, watched as Cox solidified himself as the fastest 100-meter ‘fly junior swimmer in America.

“Competing with Rowan is always somewhat shocking,” McCain said. “He has a plan for what he’s going to do and he executes it. He believes in his ability every time he swims and does what he can. When he won the 100 ‘fly at Junior Nationals, the entire team including myself were on deck waiting for him. There weren’t many more words to describe it than breathtaking. I don’t think it’s a moment I’ll ever forget. He turned around with just the brightest smile on his face.”

Competing at the Junior Championships on behalf of the Longhorn Aquatics youth team, Cox’s training schedule is very rigorous. As a result, Cox must balance his work with the Bowie swim team and the Longhorn Aquatics along with his school responsibilities.

“Rowan loves the sport, he always has,” McCain said. “We spend over 20 hours a week in the water, plus working out on land. That means getting up ungodly and coming to school with almost no sleep. Like I said, he’s just happy to be there, and that makes all the difference. He is embedded in the sport and his free time, even when he’s not in the water, is spent thinking about it. He lives and breathes swimming.”

Cox competed alongside McCain in the 4×100 meter and the 4×200 meter freestyle relays. In the 4×200-meter relay, Cox and McCain contributed to a top-eight finish, while the pair’s 4×100-meter relay ranked among the top-40 teams in the nation.

“Rowan’s talents in and out of the water always push everyone on our team to be a better version of themselves,” McCain said. “He has an extremely bright personality and livens up the pool when he steps on deck.”

Having successfully represented Longhorn Aquatics on the national stage, Cox refocuses his attention on the Bowie swim team’s fall season, where he’ll display his talents against some of the fastest swimmers in the district and state. Head coach Chloe Carr discusses the traits that have contributed to Cox’s success throughout his career.

“Rowan loves swimming and the sport as a whole,” Carr said. “He’s not there to make friends, although he’s made some pretty great ones. He’s there to swim and he loves it. A lot of athletes don’t have the same discipline and passion for their sport that Rowan has. He will take any coaching or any mistake and turn it into a positive lesson. He learns from it and moves on. This is what makes him a great athlete.”

Given Cox’s talents, it is Carr’s role to harness his ability so that Cox can fulfill his potential individually, and on behalf of the Bowie swim squad. Because of this, Carr gives Cox the freedom to succeed.

“Rowan does his own thing when it comes to preparing for competitions,” Carr said. “He does what he needs and in an individual sport like swimming, each athlete has their own way of preparing. My role in this is making sure he has enough time to warm up, he’s fed, and he knows we’re there cheering for him no matter what.”

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) prohibits student-athletes from communicating with collegiate programs before the summer transitioning into their junior year of high school. This being said top-level colleges were present when Cox was crowned the 100-meter butterfly champion.

“For my individual races, I just try to get myself in the zone so I can swim my fastest,” Cox said. “Swimming is a very mental sport. So, I think I just need to focus on myself and my team, and not focus on what college recruiters are thinking. It’s important that I always stay positive, even if I do bad. For relays, I can’t get in that zone because I need to help my teammates by hyping them up.”

Taking place in June 2024, the Junior Olympic Trials seek to find the two fastest youth swimmers in each event. Cox plans to use the momentum from his success at the Junior National Championships to compete for a spot on the junior United States swim team. If Cox makes the team, he will travel to Senegal in 2026 on behalf of his country.

“When I train butterfly by myself, I have to push myself,” Cox said. “I have a bunch of teammates with different strengths though, so I can train with them on a skill that they’re better at than me. If I’m going slower than someone it gives me motivation to swim faster.”

Cox’s success was not limited to his individual competitions, as he was the lead swimmer in the Longhorn Aquatics 4×200 meter race that finished eighth in a field of 36 teams from around the country.

“It was a surreal moment to look around and realize what we accomplished as a team,” Cox said. “You’re at the biggest meet in the country and we finished as one of the top eight teams in the country. It’s crazy because we are all friends that just chill out and practice swimming together.”

This story was originally published on The Dispatch on October 3, 2023.