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Article_St. Brendan High alumnae swims in Rio

Sports | Monday, September 19, 2016

St. Brendan High alumnae swims in Rio

Evita Leter competed for native Suriname, plans to do it again in 2020

St. Brendan High alumnae Evita Leter poses in front of the Olympic rings in Rio, where she competed for her native Suriname.

Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO

St. Brendan High alumnae Evita Leter poses in front of the Olympic rings in Rio, where she competed for her native Suriname.

St. Brendan High alumnae Evita Leter is seen here (middle lane) swimming her speciality, the breaststroke, for her native Suriname.

Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO

St. Brendan High alumnae Evita Leter is seen here (middle lane) swimming her speciality, the breaststroke, for her native Suriname.

MIAMI | Some people find success by chance. Evita Leter, St. Brendan High class of ’13, found success through hard work and dedication, in the process overcoming hat could have been a career-ending setback.

At age 4, she heard from a neighbor that the swim team was looking for children to join. She asked her mom for permission and a few months later competed in her first meet. Since then, Leter has not wandered far from the pool, practicing twice a day, every day, for the past 17 years.

Originally from Suriname, Leter moved to Miami to train with a club team. While attending St. Brendan High School, she qualified for the Florida High School Athletic Association finals every year in the 100 breaststroke, improving her placement each year. During her senior year, she was named the school’s female Scholar Athlete of the Year.

She signed her letter of intent to swim for Florida Gulf Coast University, where she won her first conference title and was named the “People’s Champion” by former Coach Neal Studd.

During the spring of her collegiate freshman year, Leter was diagnosed with Type I diabetes. Her training was interrupted when she was admitted to the hospital, and she was afraid she would lose her swimming scholarship; however, this did not even cross the coach’s mind. Leter was able to adjust her diet, work with her insulin levels during practices, and mentally get her head back into the routine of training at a high level.

“It was a setback not being able to improve my times, but I overcame it, and I am excited for where I am now,” she said.

About a month before this summer’s opening ceremonies in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Leter was notified that she would be representing her native country, Suriname, in the 2016 Olympics.

“It is every athlete’s dream to participate in the Olympics, and it was mine too,” said Leter, now a rising senior at Florida Gulf Coast. “I was ecstatic when I learned I would be participating this year, but my goal had always been to make it in 2020.” 

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