Of all the Lady Eagles in the FAST Ateneo Swimming Team (FAST) who took back the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Women’s Swimming crown this season, rookie Chloe Daos soared the highest.
Hailing from the Immaculate Conception Academy, this youngster is built for bursting to the ends of the pool, especially in the freestyle and butterfly strokes. The newcomer blasted through the stacked UAAP competition to earn both Rookie of the Year (ROTY) and Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards after clocking in golden finishes in all her solo butterfly events (200m, 100m, 50m), and all but one of her freestyle events (800m, 400m, 200m). She won a silver in the 100m freestyle event.
It is second nature for this FAST neophyte to jet through the waters as Daos has been swimming since the age of three. She has developed into a swimming sensation after competing and topping in international meets such as the Southeast Asian Age Group Swimming Championships, where she has been competing since age 12. Daos recently won silver for the 200m butterfly for girls aged 16 to 18 event in the 41st edition of the aforementioned tournament last November.
More than putting up the points to help her team take the title, Daos’ philosophy of pushing her comrades to bring out the best in themselves is what makes her another pillar that FAST can lean on. Because of the all-out support and love she has received from parents, coaches, and friends, the rookie does the same for her teammates. She continues to support and inspire them, especially in playing this role for next season’s newbies.
Taking to heart the FAST mantra, “Be the bar,” Daos intends to maintain expectations as the ROTY-MVP by continuing to foster her work ethic that would allow her to break through her previous ceiling and continue to display some captivating runs.
Winning both the ROTY and MVP awards means a high chance for this new UAAP star to be the MVP for each year in her entire college career. But for now, Daos wants to remain focused and take things one step at a time.
“There are no assurances of anything, only an assurance of the best possible effort,” she says. “However, I will continue to work hard, enjoy the process, and work on the things that I lack, and hopefully, it will be enough to reach those expectations.”
