Central High swimmer headed to Duke

Juancarlos Castrillon, a Valley Stream Central High senior and star swimmer, was granted a full athletic scholarship from Duke University, where he plans to attend in the upcoming fall semester — and yes — keep swimming.

Nine years ago, what were just a series of simple swim lessons Castrillon took at Eisenhower Park soon turned into daily practices. And not long after, his aquatic ambitions pushed him to join Central’s boys swim team. Castrillon found himself breaking new territory as personal pool time at the park was replaced with monthly swim meets and long, demanding practice sessions both on dry land and in the water.

“Getting to where I am now has definitely been a struggle,” said Castrillon. “Practicing every day, being sore on the weekends, missing parties, hangouts, and birthdays for practice or meets. It’s been a commitment. But if you can keep going and beat the mental and the physical aspect of it, you can really do anything you want.”

And those sacrifices, according to Castrillon, have paid off generously.    

The soon-to-be Blue Devil plans to aim even higher and join a world team and possibly compete in the Olympics but said that right now he is focused on the current season and is looking forward to taking part in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) competition next year.

Beyond swimming, Castrillon said he wanted to use his scholarship from Duke to enter the premed track and eventually study neurology. 

“This is something he truly wanted,” his mother Maribel said, “He realized it wasn’t just swimming. He really wants to do something bigger, and that’s something he’ll be able to accomplish at Duke.”

“I’m very proud of him. I’ll always support him, and I know he’s going to do great,” his father, Juancarlos, said, adding of Central, “It’s a great school.”   

Castrillon thanked his teachers at Central for their support, especially in helping to accommodate his hectic schedule and help him maintain his grades.

“He’s amazing. He works so hard at his swimming,” said Samantha Cipriano, Castrillon’s counselor at Central. “And despite being exhausted all the time, he’s still completing his work, he’s still living up to his expectations. He deserves this.”

“He’s a fine young man and Central’s very proud of him,” said Central High School Principal Dr. Joseph Pompilio. “He’s quite the representative of our student body, and he demonstrates all of the virtues that we preach, and the expectations we have both academically and sports wise.”