NOVA News

Welcome back NOVA family!

As we enter into the new year of 2025, I can’t help but reflect on the 26 years I have been with NOVA and how far the program has come. We’ve experienced so much together, new life, water, transitions and transformations. We’ve said goodbye to cherished friends and welcomed new ones.

As we begin the new year, I encourage everyone to look back at the things that went well in celebration and assess the things on which we can continue to work, finding joy in the opportunities to come. Knowing the new year brings the opportunity for renewal, time to improve not just at swimming but also as a coach, teammate, brother, sister, mother, and father generates excitement and anticipation for what is to come.

I don’t know about you, but I am especially excited about the transformation to come with our facility this year. You should begin to see those changes starting soon, slowly and then quickly as we enhance the spectator experience at NOVA Regency in time for next fall.

For each of us, now is the time to focus on improving just a little bit each day, outworking yesterday to help prepare for the challenges that will come and move one step closer to reaching our goals whatever they may be.

Let’s plant our seeds for success this spring now! The coaching staff and I are doing the same and look forward to seeing what we will grow together in time for short course championships.

Let’s Go NOVA!

- Coach David

Five years ago, on January 14th, we lost one of our own, swimmer Carson Brewer. His passing changed our lives and our club forever. I, like many of you, remember the pain that we felt that day and the love that we showed one another as we grieved together as a team. Through that loss we gained two beautiful traditions to celebrate and remember Carson’s life.

First, the coaching staff and the Brewer family created the Carson M. Brewer Coaches Award. This honor is given in the spring to the 12 and Under swimmer who best embodies the honorable qualities that Carson possessed: being a hard worker, dedicated teammate, and incredible friend to all. The names of the winners of this award can be found at both pools, alongside the plaque of Carson.

Swimming is filled with adversity: mistakes, disqualifications, fatigue, injury, getting out-touched etc. The way we respond to these situations is extremely important. Merriam-Webster defines resilience as the ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change. To me, resilience is how you respond to a mistake or failure and it is closely tied to being growth minded. Swimmers who are resilient respond to a mistake or a loss with the question, “How can I learn from that?”

Swimming gives us a platform to grow our resilience by constantly giving us opportunities to practice how we respond to the varied adversity. What are you going to do when you are out of breath? How does your game plan hold up when your arms feel like jelly? Can a disappointing time roll off your shoulders so you can focus on your next race? Resiliency is built through responding to and learning from these situations created in our practices and meets.

I find it helps to break your response down into three parts. First, acknowledge the mistake and how you feel about it. It’s okay to be disappointed, frustrated or sad. That means you care, but you should not linger on it. Next, reflect on how it happened and what you had control over. Frequently, your coach is very helpful with this step. Finally, make a plan to fix it the next time and carry out the plan. This can be a very short process that happens frequently during practice or a much longer process like discussing meet results with your coach.

Responding to your mistakes and failures with curiosity and determination to do better the next time is the key to becoming a better swimmer. Resilient swimmers know that they will make mistakes and know that these small mistakes don’t define themselves or their swimming. Resilient swimmers transform their challenges into opportunities for growth. This attitude and outlook keeps them coming back for more and allows them to become the best they can be.

- Coach Wyatt