Ever since Henry Claesson ‘18 was 9 years old, his goal has been to become a successful swimmer. He has dedicated himself to the sport and been a part of the LT boys varsity team since freshman year. His hard work and training up until this point has paid off. Claesson verbally committed to swimming at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, a Division I program, on Aug. 15. He officially signed his letter of intent on Nov. 11.

“Swimming at college is going to be an awesome challenge, and I’m really excited to get to swim with the team at Virginia Tech next year,” Claesson said.

Claesson was a standout athlete last year, ending the school season at the state meet with a third place finish in the 100 freestyle with a time of 45.52 and a fifth place finish in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:37.85. Claesson was the anchor for the 200 freestyle relay which finished second, as well as for the 400 freestyle relay which finished third.

“Having been state champs is awesome, and if we could repeat that [again], that’d be a nice cherry on top,” Claesson said.

Claesson went on to swim in the Illinois Senior Championship on March 3. He got second in the 100 butterfly with a time of 49.67. He also raced in the NCSA Spring Junior National Championship on March 17, and swam the 100 freestyle in 44.85 seconds, beating his state time.

“One of the things that makes Henry so great is that not only does he work hard in the pool, he is also incredibly mentally strong,” former teammate Ben Johnston ‘17 said. “He always has a positive mindset and refuses to lose. He always has new goals [and] is one of the fastest people we have in the water.”

Claesson raced in five events in the 2017 Arena Pro Swim Series in Santa Clara on June 2-4; the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle, as well as the 100 and 200 butterfly.

“His greatest strength is he’s a team player,” teammate Jeff Vitek ‘18 said. “He will do anything in his power to benefit the people around him. He will come back in any relay because he cares about his team. Henry can always find a way. He’s one of the fastest swimmers in the state.”

Claesson raced in the Speedo Winter Junior National Meet on Dec. 6-9. He swam in five different events and finished 37th in the 100 freestyle. Only the top one-percent of swimmers 18 years and younger in the country qualified for this USA Swimming competition. Half of the swimmers raced in Knoxville, Tenn., at the Allan Jones Aquatic Center. The other half, including Claesson, raced at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. Claesson, Vitek, Spencer Walker ‘18 and Callahan Dunn ‘20 are the only swimmers from LT that swam in this meet, Claesson said.

Claesson was elected as co-captain for the 2017-2018 swim season, alongside four of his other teammates including Vitek, Walker, Frank McCarter ‘18 and Sam Dillon ‘18. As an upperclassman and co-captain, Claesson has a lot of responsibility, and he works to ensure the team has a strong bond.

“He leads by example by being one of the hardest workers in the pool and one of the most respectful guys out of the pool,” Vitek said. “He knows how to mix fun and serious well, and I am confident he’ll be a great captain this year as he’s a natural born leader.”

On Dec. 22, the LT boys swim team swam in a dual meet against Hinsdale at South Campus. Claesson finished first in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:42.80. He also finished first in the 100 butterfly with a time of 50.79, the third fastest time in the state thus far.

The team is starting the new season with the constant reminder of their championships at the past two state meets. The swimmers are working hard to measure up to these standards set over the last few years.

“I encourage any student to come to Evanston in February to watch us at state,” Vitek said. “I can’t promise any place or performance, but I can promise we will be fun to watch. We swim with heart and that’s clear to see. Henry’s a perfect example.”

The next meet for the boys varsity swim team is the Lyons Township Invitational at South Campus on Jan. 27 at 12 p.m.