Maggie Love
Maggie Love
QUICK STATS
- Hometown: Carmel, IN
- Birthdate: February 6, 2003
- College: Purdue University
- Coaches: John Klinge, Chris Plumb
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
- Big 10 Championship Finalist
- 2-time Big 10 Swimmer of the Week
- IHSAA Mental Attitude Winner
EXPERIENCE
Maggie Love, a senior at Purdue University, is a versatile swimmer with conference championship qualifying times in sprint freestyle, breaststroke, and individual medley events. Maggie’s swim journey began a bit later, as she began swimming in eighth grade. She says, “I never even thought it would be possible for me to swim in college, until the end of my freshman year of high school when I made the sectional roster and got the opportunity to be on deck at the high school state swim meet. While I wasn’t swimming, I knew that I had big dreams I wanted to pursue, and I was going to work as hard as I could to get there. Since I started swimming later than all my friends, I was always a couple steps behind them. This motivated me to work even harder as I saw those around me succeeding.”
Swimming taught Maggie about hard work, discipline, and who she wanted to become, which includes giving back to the younger generation of swimmers. Her passion for working with children is evident, as she says, “I love spending time around kids, and I had a lot of great coaches growing up who have shaped me into the person I am today. I want to be a great role model for kids to look up to.”
As an athlete who specializes in individual medley, Maggie has extensive knowledge of all strokes and brings that expertise to Fitter & Faster Swim Clinics. Maggie’s goal is to help young swimmers improve while having fun. She says, “Swimming is such a hard sport that if you want to be successful and do well it’s easier to stay motivated if you’re having fun with it.”
Maggie shares with Fitter & Faster Clinic participants that in addition to strong stroke technique, perseverance is key to success. She tells clinic participants that a breakthrough doesn’t come when you want it to, it often comes right after, and that’s why so many people give up right when they’re on the edge of a breakthrough. “If you just keep going and keep working hard when it gets tough to stay motivated, that’s how you achieve something really special. It’s frustrating when you’re not reaching your goals all the time, but if there is no failure, there is no success.”
“When a defining moment comes along, you can do one of two things. Define the moment, or let the moment define you.” – Roy McAvoy.
