Friday Spotlight: Mohamed El-Askary, Chapman Swim & Dive
The height of the 3-meter diving board is nothing compared to Mohamed El-Askary's aspirations. The first-year diver is setting himself up to one day become a pilot in the US Air Force – just one of his ambitious goals – but first he hopes to help the Chapman swimming & diving team on the diving boards and in the pool at the SCIAC Championships.
El-Askary is a triple major in Electrical Engineering, Business and Data Science. He's at his on-campus job 18 hours per week. He's at swimming practice in the morning and then diving practice in the afternoon. Somewhere in the middle he fits in a lift. On Friday's, he is in LA as part of USC's Air Force ROTC.
Head spinning yet? Despite his goals away from the pool, the moments he spends in the water and on the diving boards are just as an important part of his day.
"I enjoy diving. I enjoy swimming. I enjoy the team camaraderie," El-Askary said. "It's my break in the day and when I get to hang out and be around my friends. I really like the coaches as well."
That's just a normal routine for the Chapman freshman. El-Askary was an accomplished youth gymnast, ranking as high as seventh in the nation, and a national record-holder. When he was 12, El-Askary held a handstand for five minutes and 45 seconds in the Mr. Handstand Competition, which still stands as the national record. For good measure, he also won the All-Around competition later in the meet.
Four months ago, he made the switch from gymnastics to diving. Despite being at just the beginning of his journey in the sport, he has his sights set on making the finals and scoring for the Panthers at the SCIAC Championships Feb. 15-18. Beyond his diving goals, El-Askary has discovered a passion for swimming as well. He is in the pool with the swimmers for morning practice every weekday and set a goal for himself to make the 200 free relay team for the upcoming championship meet.
If the stress of a daily packed schedule affects him, you wouldn't know it. His coaches have made note of the way he builds up his teammates, cheering them on and helping each reach their individual goals. Despite thriving in individual sports such as gymnastics and diving, his military mentality spills into the way he approaches his team at Chapman
"Being a team and being a whole unit is something that's really important to me. Those are your brothers and sisters and you're on the battlefield together. That's just the way I think about it. Obviously, we aren't on the battlefield here but we're a family."
El-Askary has become a vital part of a Chapman men's swimming & diving team that is the best in it's short program history. With several dual meet wins, the Panthers are looking to climb the standings at the SCIAC Championships and look to be flying forward as a program.
The Panthers face Occidental in one last dual meet in the 2022-23 season before heading off to the SCIAC Championship Feb. 15-18.