- March 28, 2024
Loading
A native of São Paulo, Brazil, Giovanna Souza has been a member of the Ocoee swimming team since her sophomore year. Her events include the 200 free, 200 medley and 200 fly, in which she competed at regionals Saturday, Nov. 9.
It was back in Brazil when I was 4, and my dad actually wanted me to go. Then I started liking it and I decided to stay in it.
Besides the sport, I feel like it’s friendships — it’s something that you take on for life, like a family.
I feel like it’s balancing school and swimming, because that’s hard, because I get home and I still have a lot of homework.
The 200 free. I feel like it’s better; it’s just like my style — my stroke. I’m just good at it. I also like the 200 fly, too.
The first thing I’ve noticed is that here we are more united than we are in Brazil, because in Brazil I feel like it’s more about the competition, so we’re not really helping each other. But here we just come together and we always empower each other.
I think it was my sophomore year that I went to regionals for the first time and it was the first time a girl had ever gone to regionals in an individual stroke from Ocoee.
I can’t even describe it — I was so happy. I feel like everywhere I go I have to leave my mark behind and that was it — it meant a lot.
I’ve gone to regionals my sophomore and junior year, and this year I wanted to go to states — that’s my goal — because I’ve never been.
I feel like it went by so fast, but it was a good fast. I feel like that is something I’ll never forget, because it’s the high-school experience.
You always have to push yourself — you can never give up.
I plan on swimming in college — I don’t know which one yet, but that’s what I plan to do. (Then) the Olympics — that’s what this is all about for me, that has always been my dream.