I walk out to the ledge of the board,
The room is filled with peering eyes and sounds of rustling movements,
I take a deep breath pace myself,
Clear my mind of everything,
Pull, pull, kick, kick, breathe, repeat.

The sound of the whistle pierces my ears,
My body jolts forward,
My arms begin prying the water apart,
Feet start to kick rapidly,
Pull, pull, kick, kick, breathe, repeat.

I feel my lungs start to crave oxygen,
Lift my head take a breath,
Back in again,
Almost there just keep going,
Pull, pull, kick, kick, breathe, repeat.

Breathe once more glance ahead,
Time for the flip,
Don't panic, just need to pace myself,
Not to close to the wall,
Pull, pull, flip, push, kick, kick, breathe.

My body muscles begin to burn,
My lungs tighten,
My arms straining to finish,
My legs start to ache,
Pull, pull, kick, kick, breathe, repeat.

Once more glance ahead,
The end is near,
I reach the cold concrete wall,
My arm gets jerked up,
Raised high above my head.

I'm pulled out of the pool,
A towel is wrapped around me,
I gasp for air try to take it in,
A medal is placed around my neck,
I shiver, I won.