The Parade April 2013 | Page 57

Sports Marist School. TPS: What is the actual name of the college where you are studying and what are you studying towards? TM: I haven’t made a decision yet on where I am going for university. I’m still weighing my options to see which school will give me the best education and help me excel in my swimming. TPS: How do you balance the swimming and the schoolwork? TM: School comes first. I try to get some of my homework done during school so that I can have a focused mind at practice. I don’t want to worry about the literature paper during practice. Sometimes it gets difficult when I have to travel for meets but it’s nothing I can’t handle. TPS: You have been given positions of responsibility in your swimming team such as captaining the team. Is this true and if so, how does it feel to be leading out your troops on the competitive US swimming circuit? TM: Yes, I was the swim co-captain of my school’s swim team. It was a big responsibility. I remember when I was younger and all the senior captains made my experience special. So the first thing I asked myself was to come up with a strategy to make the season special for someone else. I think I achieved that because my team mates have come to me to say they appreciated very much my leadership. Oh! I was also captain of my house at St Michaels in Borrowdale way back when I was in the third grade. TPS: You’ve probably spent a lot of time away from Zimbabwe. What would you say is your most cherished memory of your motherland? TM: My grandparents. My grandparents and I were and still are very close. I try my best to keep in touch. It was hard in 2011 when I lost my grandmother, my mom’s mother. We were very close and I still remain very close to her even though she is gone. TPS: In Zimbabwe, most of our sports persons have nicknames. Have your colleagues that side come up with one for you yet? TM: Well a lot of my teammates call me Black Thunder. My cocaptain, Will Herbert, is nicknamed White Lightning. At the swim galas, we would always bring the noise - Thunder and Lightning. TPS: Most of us Zimbabweans dream of America as the promised land. From your perspective, life in America - what is it like? TM: It’s different; it’s a great place to be but there is nothing that beats the feeling of being on one’s home soil. TPS: At the moment, you’re still developing as a swimmer. Where do you see yourself in five years’ time? TM: I always imagine myself as an Olympian. I. I want to be one of the best and I feel that if I keep working hard and pushing myself, I will certainly get there. TP Images courtesy of berecruited.com & Boys Swimming, Marist School, Atlanta, USA The Parade - Zimbabwe’s Most Read Lifestyle Magazine April 2013 Page 57