A great asset
Seton swimmer Jameson Hill
By HUGH RIST
For the News & Messenger
Published: January 25, 2009
Before the season opened, Seton swimming coach Jim Koehr raved about a newcomer to his program.Published: January 25, 2009
Junior Jameson Hill had relocated to Manassas from Pooler, GA, a suburb of Savannah, along with his year-round swimming coach, Rick Benner, who moved from Savannah to Manassas and joined QDD Aquatics as a coach.
Seton would not have Hill swimming for the school if it was not for Benner, whose successful year-round coaching career includes stints in Puyallup, Washington and Orlando, Fla. as well as Savannah.
Benner also coached former U. S. Olympian Megan Quan for nearly 15 years.
When Benner’s job moved him to the Northern Virginia area, Hill was faced with a decision: continue to train in Savannah or approach Benner about going with him to Manassas.
After it became clear Benner was coming to Northern Virginia, Hill’s mother, Jill Royal, a nurse, who still lives in Georgia, said she and Hill discussed it and Royal decided to allow Benner to become his legal guardian so he could continue training with Benner.
“Not having him around stinks, but I spent a lot of time with Rick and his wife and know that they will take good care of Jameson and be a good mentor for him,” Royal said.
Hill, whose best and favorite event is the 200 freestyle, said he is grateful to his mother and stepfather, Keith, for allowing him to train under Benner.
“They want me to succeed and are very supportive,” Hill said. “Not living with my family is difficult, but I try to stay focused on why I am here.”
Benner said the decision to serve as Hill’s guardian was an easy one for him because Hill became close friends with Benner’s son, Peter, who is currently a freshman at the University of Georgia.
Separation from family is not the only sacrifice Hill makes in his quest to realize a dream. He wakes up at 4:45 a.m. every weekday to practice before going to school.
At 2:30 p.m., Hill goes home for a quick snack or a light nap before returning to the pool at 3:30 and practicing until 7. After that, he comes home, eats dinner, and then does his homework before going to bed.
One of his morning practices occurs with his Seton teammates, but Mondays are the only days Hill is required to swim with his teammates because Koehr says he understands that year-round swimmers have several days per week of required practices with their year-round teams.
“I want my kids exposed to what they (year-round) programs have to offer,” Koehr said. “Why would I fight that (the requirement to attend year-round practices)? I have always gone out of my way to accommodate the year-round swimmer because in the long run it benefits my program because he is a great example to my other 72 members of the program.”
Hill trains hard (logging an estimated 20,000 meters per day according to Benner), but the hard work is paying off as Hill has drawn early interest from colleges such as Virginia Tech, Indiana, and Georgia, according to Benner.
Aside from the separation, Hill’s parents have made sacrifices, too, including paying between $600-$700 dollars for plane tickets, so Hill can participate in national events. There were other costs as well, Royal said.
Some of the competition suits can cost between $200-500, but when Jameson competed at the Junior Nationals once, a company donated some of the suits, so that was really cool for him.
One of the other sacrifices Hill has to make is foregoing one of the necessary staples of the adolescent diet—fast food.
“Coach (Benner) is telling me to stay away from fast food, avoid the greasy stuff. So I really don’t eat many hamburgers. I usually eat a lot of protein and vegetables, but I am committed to doing this, so it really isn’t that hard.”
Hill said he is grateful to Koehr and Seton School for allowing him to participate with their program.
“I want the best education possible, and they are providing it,” Hill said. “They’re pretty lenient with year-round swimmers, so I can practice with them only a little. What the high school experience offers me, though, is a chance to do something for a team. Year-round swimming is all about the individual.”
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Rick Benner is a FANTASTIC coach! The parents love him, the KIDS love him. He doesn’t care just about making a kid fast. He understands the role swimming has in making your child a better person. He cares about the youngest swimmers starting out as much as the young adults he works with every day. So many of the elite coaches only spend time with their group of swimmers. Not Rick. He comes to the meets to watch and work with the younger kids. He rotates practices so he can spend time with them. He goes out to all the places where QDD practices-once or twice a week to work with the kids there, and also work with the other coaches to make them better at what they do as well.
What Rick Benner has given to Jameson is only a sliver of what he has been giving to the youth who for swim for QDD. We are very lucky to have such a fantastic coach, father and role model in our community.
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