BANNER ELK, N.C. – In a continuation of our alumni series, providing in-depth interviews with some of our esteemed alumni to discuss their favorite memories at Lees-McRae and any advice that they would give to our current student-athletes, Director of Sports Information
Patrick Smith sat down with men's swimming alum
Arsham Mirzaei for a special edition of the Bobcat Alumni Spotlight.
Mirzaei, who swam for Head Men's and Women's Swimming Coach
Sean Weddell from 2018-2020, became the first Bobcat swimmer to become a conference champion for capturing the 100 fly at the 2019 championship meet. In addition to also winning the 100 free at the Conference Carolinas Swimming Championships in 2020, Mirzaei posted four other top-five finishes at the conference championships including a second-place finish in the 50 free in 2019.
Question: What are a few of your favorite memories that you have from your time at Lees-McRae and wearing the green, gold and white?
Mirzaei: "For me, one of the memories was that we were the first class as a student-athlete to join the swim team at Lees-McRae. The team was brand new. I was lucky to join the team and it was right at the time when I was transferring from my previous school. Coach
Sean Weddell got in contact with me and I actually never saw the campus prior to coming here. We FaceTime so I could see the college. The first year, 2018-19, we had a really small team. The first memory was when I first saw the campus, the mountains and the forest and that really got my attention. Reminded me of back home in my country. Another memory was our first meet, I believe against King University, and our team was very pumped and excited about being brand new. We went into the Fall Frenzy and that was our first big competition. This was also the first time I swam the butterfly and we practiced a few weeks prior to fix some issues. I ended up winning the Conference Carolinas Championship in the butterfly. That was a big moment for me, especially being a new team, and bringing the trophy back to Lees-McRae."
Question: How did it feel to win that first championship, especially being a first-year program?
Mirzaei: "It felt awesome to be honest. I didn't know that I was that close, because back in November when I first started, I had a lot of technical issues. We were working on it all season, but we didn't realize focus on it until October. Swimming is such a complicated sport with math and physics involved; Coach Sean saw the possibility for me to win the conference title. Until the day of the 100 fly, I swam in the morning and saw how doable it was. I was really pumped for it.
Question: Was there a class or professor that really stood out to you and that you still remember today?
Mirzaei: "I'm coming from a country where nothing exists as a student-athlete. You don't have the NCAA and I never experience something like what a student-athlete goes through. It was really a good feeling that you have this chance while in college. In the small school like Lees-McRae, you have the opportunity to be closer to your professors and they have more time to spend with you. They are always looking to give assistance for student-athletes. I really good relations with all of my professors and I am very thankful for it. I still keep in touch with some of them and I am planning on visiting campus in the near future to meet with them. They really helped me, along with every student-athlete, to get the most out of their class and succeed.
Question: What was it about Lees-McRae, besides being contacted by Coach Weddell, which was a deciding factor in you coming to Banner Elk?
Mirzaei: "Well, my previous college dropped its swimming program. It was really hard for everyone to find a transfer spot. I was in contact with other colleges along with Coach Weddell, but one of the reasons I chose Lees-McRae was the fact that the program was just starting. I felt like I could be helpful and I knew that we would be competing against the same swimmers with being in the same conference. I also knew the background of Coach Weddell and I believed in his coaching philosophy. I decided in a few days and I feel that my luck was involved with making this decision."
Question: What has your post-graduation from Lees-McRae life looked for you?
Mirzaei: "I left Banner Elk before spring break and never returned due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After graduation in May, I came back to the job that I have been doing the past couple of years as a Beach Patrol in Hilton Head, S.C. We had quite a busy season as we were not expecting this many people to be on the beach this year. I am still here on the island, but I am also working on my certification in strength and conditioning specialization and my coaching certification through USA swimming. My ultimate goal in my career is to become a swim coach."
Question: What is some advice you would give to a current student-athlete at Lees-McRae?
Mirzaei: "A piece of general advice for all students would be to start planning your post-college life during your junior year. A student should start planning out what they want to do and whether they want to go to graduate school, in order to start getting prepared. Everyone is excited to be done with school, but once you are done it is a different world. For the student-athlete, advice would be to enjoy your time in college. The four years go by really fast so stay away from drama, as it not really worth it once you flashback on your career. Enjoy the college and try to gain all of the experiences outside of your sport and class."
Question: Is there anything else you would like to add before we finish up the interview?
Mirzaei: "I would like to say thank you to all of faculty and staff. It was amazing to be in Lees-McRae for the last two years of my life. Hopefully I will be able to come back to campus to meet with everyone."
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