If you caught a glimpse of Highland Park swimmer Allen Tran just moments before a race, you’d see tomato-red marks covering his chest.
“Allen slaps himself before races, like this,” said senior Joey Levy, beating his chest. “And it’s just bright red handprints all over his chest.”
Tran’s pre-race ritual is just one example of the junior’s one-of-a-kind nature.
“He’s kind of a weird kid,” Levy said. “He has fun with it — just goes out there and likes competing.”
“He’s very social, and he’s a happy-go-lucky kid,” Highland Park coach Tim Sirois said. “More than any other kid we’ve had, he knows so many kids from other teams. He’s unique. That’s who he is.”
But in the pool, Tran has broken through as one of the area’s top performers. A three-year varsity swimmer, Tran broke the school record for the 100-yard breaststroke at the Vernon Hills Sectional on Feb. 21 with a time of 59.41 seconds, eclipsing the mark held by Jon Spagat since 2002 (59.64 seconds). Tran was also named all-Central Suburban League along with six of his teammates, the most during Sirois’ tenure.
“When I started swimming, I never had the thought, ‘Hey, I want that record,’ ” Tran said. “It was just about that personal best. Now, I feel so accomplished.”
That mark landed Tran a spot alongside teammates Levy Nathan and Alan Brint at the state meet at New Trier, which kicked off on Friday.
In his first race at state this year, Tran broke his own school record. He finished in 58.83 seconds, good for 13th in the preliminaries but missing the cut to make the finals by just two hundredths of a second.
Tran’s journey to Highland Park swimming prominence, like his personality, is far from typical.
“I first jumped into the pool in the middle of fourth grade when my mom was just like, ‘You’re getting fat,’ ” Tran recalled. “I was like, ‘Alright.’ In the beginning, it was sort of just to get fit, but after a while I realized that I’m not half bad at this.”
But Tran did need a change of mindset before attaining the success he’s seen this year. Now, teammates and coaches marvel at his work ethic, which wasn’t always the case.
“From the very beginning, he would never take practice seriously,” Levy said. “He would be the one getting yelled at the most. He still is, but he’s put in the mindset of, ‘The more I practice, the harder I practice, the more realistic my goals can become.’ “
More Top Picks Best 48 Inch Range Hoods For Kitchens
Now, Tran wakes up every morning at 4:30 a.m. for practice and has committed himself to training much more than in the past.
“I know he tried his best every single day this year, and I know that hasn’t been true in the past,” Levy said.
“This year, the consistency has been there,” Sirois said. “It takes a while for someone to learn how far they can push themselves, and he can push himself to the point of not being able to do another swim.”
Sam Brief is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.