Seattle Prep offers a wide variety of sports and a very deep range of programs. About 72% of Prep students play a sport for a certain Prep team with 45 different teams to join. Despite a large variety of options, not all the sports that Prep offers apply to every student. Some athletes may do archery, wrestling, skiing, or even water polo competitively after school. However, just because Prep doesn’t offer a sport for them, doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be recognized.
Mateo Baptista-Allan is a sophomore at Seattle Prep who participates in gymnastics competitively. His dedication for gymnastics started ever since he was 5. He shares that, “My mom got me into the sport because when I was a baby during my free time, I would jump up and down on the couches and do a lot flips. With this much energy, my mom decided to put me into gymnastics.” From then on, Baptista-Allan has stayed committed as he has been competing for a total of 7 years. During these 7 years, he has been able to make a name for himself. His accomplishments include being a state champion in the all-around category twice and state champion in certain events at least 5 to 6 times. Also, he has been a regional medalist in the all-around category three times and a regional champion at multiple events five times. To top it all off, he has been to nationals three times and only place in the top 10 at least each appearance.
Very similar to athletes at Prep, his normal schedule out of school looks the same as a normal Prep athlete such as after school practices and frequent competitions. Baptista-Allan shares what a normal day for him looks like: “I wake up, eat breakfast, and then going to school. Next, I take the bus back after school and do homework for around 15 minutes then I go to practice. I practice for four hours, until I come back home to eat.”
However, this schedule is all-yearlong instead of one season which makes his sport more rigorous and immense. He must balance school with barely any time for breaks along with his body his body stays healthy from the daily yearlong demands. Baptista-Allan shares how one time “one of [his] grips on the high bar broke, causing [him] to go flying into another bar. It hurt a lot”.
Despite the physical demand, Baptista-Allan finds ways to keep being motivated. “I am kept motivated by my love for the sport. It is the most fun sport I’ve ever done and I would not give it up for anything.”
All these major feats did not come easy though, as Baptista-Allan shares his journey to the top in his early years of gymnastics. “When I was very young, and in one of the lowest levels, my coach was very hard on me. You see, he came from Russia and the Russian work ethic for gymnastics is very different from the work ethic of America. Younger me wanted to quit, but I’m glad I didn’t. From that coach, I was able to grow as a gymnast and helped build who I am today.”
With so many peaks and valleys in Baptista-Allan’s gymnastics career, his experiences have helped him shape himself. He has helped apply these experiences to his everyday life to let him grow as a competitor and as a student. Whether at school or in his future gymnastics competitions, Baptista-Allan is prepared for any challenge that comes his way.
