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Wharton swimmer wins state contest

Marjorie Chamberlin finishes first in the state in the 100-yard butterfly after a couple of years of working up to it.

By TERRY JONES
Published December 2, 2005

TAMPA PALMS - In her freshman and sophomore years at Wharton High School, swimmer Marjorie Chamberlin placed third in the state in her best event, the 100-yard butterfly.

As a junior last year, she finished second in the Class 3A state finals.

This year was her last shot to be a state champion. But some of the tougher statewide competitors were back again, and she wasn't sure she could do it. She wasn't even the favorite to win.

She triumphed.

Touching the wall first this year was a surprise to her. Even with all her hard work and sacrifice over the past year, she wasn't sure she had won.

"I looked at the clock and at the others touching at about the same time and thought I was seeing it wrong," she said. "I looked at that clock three times before some of my club teammates ran to me jumping up and down, shouting, "You did it, you did it!' "

Chamberlin fulfilled a dream by winning the event in a time of 56.98 seconds in the recent Florida High School Athletic Association swimming and diving finals in Fort Lauderdale.

She did her homework and was prepared when the opportunity knocked for the final time in high school.

She also placed eighth in the 200 freestyle event.

"After celebrating with my club teammates, I went to the area in the bleachers where my family was sitting and asked them to come down for hugs," she said. "My dad, mom, brother and other family members all came down for group hugs. What a rush. What excitement."

Chamberlin, 18, has lived in Tampa Palms since elementary school. She started competitive swimming as a member of Team New Tampa (TNT) at about age 11. Recently, she moved over to Tampa Bay Aquatics in Tampa.

After the state tournament, she took a week off from training to relax and enjoy Thanksgiving with her family.

Now she's back in training for a big meet in Texas in March and to get ready for college competition in the fall of 2006.

In October, she committed to sign a scholarship to swim for the University of Iowa for the next four years. Her 4.0 GPA along with her swimming accomplishments made her signature attractive to many college coaches.

"I had several good offers and nice opportunities, but I liked Iowa," she said. "The campus is very nice. The climate provides four complete seasons - something different for a Florida girl."

[Last modified December 1, 2005, 09:34:11]