Swimming & Diving | 7/23/2020 12:01:00 PM
With one of his most productive seasons now concluded, senior freestyler Tim Sates has his eyes set on more than just personal victory for his final campaign bearing the Maroon & Gold. The Durban, South Africa native managed 25 separate podium finishes throughout his junior season, and plans to carry that same dominance and determination into the 2020-21 season.Sates phoned in from his home in South Africa this week to discuss his past dominance, hopes for the future, and even his passion for sculpting jewelry!
GopherSports: What have you been doing to keep busy the past few months?
Sates: "I'll take it all the way back to the beginning of Covid-19 to start. We had taken our first week off swimming for spring break, and everyone went home to their respective states right before COVID-19 came. Most of those teammates I didn't see again and I still haven't seen since we all left at spring break. What was really nice though was, during that week of spring break, there were still a few people who were on campus. Matthew Thomas, Nick Saulnier and Tuomas Pokkinen along with myself and my roommate Kyle were able to go snowboarding. It was the first time for all of us, and it was the first time really in our swimming careers we've had a chance to try out something. I never knew, but that was going to be the last time I saw any of them. So, that was the start of COVID-19. I then spent a month in Montana with my roommate Cale before I came home to South Africa, and I've been here since mid-May. Since I've been here, I've pretty much just been catching up with family. South Africa has been under pretty strict lockdown, compared to America, so things have been a little tougher here. I've been trying to exercise anyway I can, which has mainly been running and surfing as our pools have only just recently opened up. Another thing, since I haven't been swimming, I've managed to get a few tattoos. Shout out to Coach Terry. She's the only person who tells me I'm not allowed to get them and I keep doing more. I've also been doing a lot of sculpture. This break away from swimming and school has definitely given me an opportunity to dip back into that passion of mine. I took art for five years in high school and sculpted a majority of the time there into wax. Now, I've been whittling with wood, and I've started sculpting jewelry as well."
GS: How was your first time out snowboarding?
Sates: "Snowboarding was really fun. I picked it up much quicker than I thought, and I'm really happy I never got hurt. Normally we can't do things like that because we're trying to preserve our bodies, but to get the hang of it within the day and be able to go down some nice runs was really nice."
GS: Do you think the surfing background helped you at all there?
Sates: "Yes. For Kyle and myself, this was our first time snowboarding. I mean, coming to Minnesota, this was our first time seeing snow, so I've spent the past few years surrounded by this fluffy snow that apparently people can ride on, and I haven't been able to really get the chance. Within three hours, I had gotten the hang of it, and I was going down some decent sized slopes, and around an hour and a half later, Kyle and I managed to go down a black diamond. So, to say that I came out with no injuries was cool. I think it's a definite replacement for surfing that I never knew about, but I enjoyed it just as much."
GS: How would you assess your 2019-20 season and what are your biggest takeaways?
Sates: "2019, I think from the start of the year Coach Kelly will agree we had a lot of firecrackers as a team. I experienced some personal firecrackers myself that made my year somewhat challenging, but it also gave me a much broader perspective on what I was doing. I thoroughly enjoyed the team this year, and I'm sure that's going to be coming up a bit throughout this interview. I've swam my whole life, and swimming is an individually orientated sport, especially where I'm from in South Africa. High school swimming isn't a thing here, and although club swimming is, we don't swim together as a team; it's only individual. So, I've never actually really been a part of a team before. It was the first time I was part of a team that actually cared about how everyone else was doing, and not just how well they are swimming. A team that was able to look defeat in the face and still take out the positives, no matter how hard you think that could be. A team that, when someone had a bad race, they would put it behind them and make sure to ask you how your race was with a smile on their face. I think that's how I can sum up that season. All around, I think we finished up with really good B1Gs with some outstanding swims all around. My favorite part looking back at the season as a whole was just before the 400 free relay with Matt, Nick and Tuomas. It was their last race, and to swim that with them together as the only non-senior in that relay just before we all went our separate ways was very nice."
GS: After losing such a strong senior class in 2020, are there any teammates of yours you expect to pick up those vacated roles?
Sates: "This is nothing against any of my past teammates, but I wish I had our senior class as a freshman. I think we have some outstanding leaders and some really amazing people in our senior class. I think everyone will step up a bit, but I really think our senior class will do great."
GS: As a senior yourself, how do you personally plan on stepping into those roles?
Sates: "First of all, my aim is to be fit enough again by early fall to be the fastest freestyler in the pool, and to be able to push the rest of the guys for my final year. I want to leave the team knowing that they're going to produce even stronger years in the years to come. That the people I leave after I graduate are going to further better the Gopher name and keep that culture going. Also, I think, as an international, I'm able to give a lot of advice to some of the younger members on the team, especially the incoming freshmen. I say that because this is the first time they are away from home, and I'm very aware of that feeling of being homesick. For example, I know how a lot of freshman should improve their diets. As freshmen come in, it's our first time away from home so we just eat what we can. I think we can definitely place a larger emphasis on what we're putting into our bodies as a team and being more accountable to each other for that."
GS: What is your favorite part about being a Gopher?
Sates: "Honestly, it's the respect and dignity that we are treated with. I've witnessed some incredible medical care from our trainers and our coaches. They attend to us like we are more important than themselves, and it's a very different experience for me to work with coaches that want me to do better than I even want to do. I've grown up having coaches that just put the set in front of me, and I had to rely on my own will and my own mental strength to push through these years of swimming. Minnesota has allowed me to become part of a team, and I see that everywhere. Whether it's the coaches that are making sure we are doing everything inside and outside of the pool to perform better in the water, or our trainers and medical staff who spend hours before and after us on deck. Just all around the way I'm treated."
GS: Who has been the most inspirational person to you during your swimming journey?
Sates: "As I've said before, there are many differences between my coaching back home and here at Minnesota. Back home, I relied a lot on my self-determination. I didn't have as many role models and I was very goal driven. The truth of the matter is that I don't really look up to any one person. I can only give credit to this team I raced with this last season for making it my most favorable of my past 15 years. It's the first time I've been swimming for other people rather than myself, and it's made it quite different. I think instead of deriving inspiration from a singular person, the people that I've surrounded myself with have inspired me."
GS: Who is a teammate who really impressed you this past season?
Sates: "There are many, but I have to tip my hat to Tom Donker. Tom came into the season, hit the ground running, was very passionate and showed great enthusiasm. Right before our first meet when everyone was a little nervous, he was fully ready, and he got injured on his way to the meet. He was meant to be out for the rest of the year. I know how disappointed I would've been if I'd have trained so hard only to, right before I got to race, be set back like that, but Tom literally didn't stop. I think he took like two or three days off maximum, and he got straight back onto the stationary bike, got a personal lifting schedule with Corey and was actually back in the water swimming with us in Hawaii on our training trip. He was going to come along for that trip, and if he was feeling good enough, kick a little, but he ended up all but keeping up with the pack. I think, not in terms of times necessarily, but his determination really impressed me. I know that right now he's on the other side of the world, he's come through his injuries, and he's still fitter than I am, so I give him credit."
GS: Is there someone you would tab as the next breakout Gopher?
Sates: "I think there are two. Gavin Olson, I believe has crazy potential. We've all seen it, he just needs to learn how to keep it consistent, and I think then we're going to see some insane swims. The second person is Lucas Farrar. Lucas never raced with us as a redshirt, but I've been swimming with him still in practice. I like the fact that he's still no less part of the team just because he doesn't race with us. I've seen the way he trains and his mindset, and I think if he keeps it up, we're also going to see some crazy races from him."
GS: What comes after school for you?
Sates: "So, after school I might stay a few months in the states and explore a little bit with some of my friends before I come back home to South Africa. When I do, I'm looking to go straight into marketing, whether it be Durban or Cape Town. Those are the two cities I would choose from in South Africa. Eventually, I'm hoping once I've got a little bit of work experience behind me, I might hit Australia. I am chasing the waves, that is one of the main priorities. The waves and the sun. I really want to pursue some more art as well, and I definitely think it's going to come into play eventually into my occupation."
GS: What were some of the hardest challenges you have had to face as an international student athlete?
Sates: "I think the hardest part was definitely the last three years. No, but in terms of swimming, I think the huge challenge for international swimmers is getting used to short course yards. I've always swam long course meters predominantly, and it's almost like a different sport. I've been doing it for three years now, and there are still more tweaks I know I can make to improve. Another is that I only go home once a year. I know we have opportunities to do that more during the year, but I come for nine months and go home for three, so those nine months can be difficult. I'll actually suppress memories and thoughts of family and the beach. Because it's so far away, I actually try to avoid going to those places. Homesickness I think is a real thing."
GS: With that feeling of homesickness, do you have any advice for any future potential student-athletes?
Sates: "Personally, I'm very fortunate to have my roommate Kyle who's also South African. He's kind of my home away from home and he makes it easier. I also think that we have one of the most accepting teams I've ever seen. We have such a variety of people. It feels like we're all from the same place, yet none of us know where that is. It's almost like we've been picked from all parts of the world and placed at the Jean K. Freeman center. It's a weird feeling, but a really good one too. For a newcomer coming into our team, the best thing they can do is just be themselves because I think our team is going to be almost a family to them and take them in very easily."
GS: The 2019-20 season was filled with adversity. How did you see the team's strength shine through while dealing with that?
Sates: "I've seen freshman and sophomores step up to senior positions, so it's like there's no longer a hierarchy of leadership in the team that I've seen. I've seen everyone leading from their own respective positions, whether it be in their training group or even just their households. I've seen a lot of people taking responsibility that they normally may have left for the upperclassmen, so I think everyone is in a very similar mindset with regards to where we want to be as a team, understanding that we have had some firecrackers go off and understanding that if we keep up with this mindset, we are eventually going to be the best team."
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