Back-to-back freestyle state champion Gig Harbor swimmer Oates commits to Arizona

Billy Oates already has built an impressive resume as a defending state champion for the Gig Harbor High School boys swim team.

He has already won the Class 3A 50-yard freestyle two years in a row as a freshman and sophomore, and won the 100-yard backstroke as a sophomore as well.

Now in his junior year, Oates has his college plans figured out as he will attending and swimming for the University of Arizona Wildcats. Oates attends Bellarmine Preparatory School in Tacoma, but swims for Gig Harbor High School since Bellarmine does not have a pool.

“My dad and I are pretty fortunate to take some trips out to some campuses and I texted some of the boys on the team to see if they wanted to meet up,” Oates said. “I really got to meet them and I really, really liked the brotherhood there. It is an individual sport but they’re all there for each other.”

Aside from having a close relationship with his teammates when he attends Arizona, Oates feels like there is a lot of potential for him to grow as a swimmer.

That is a sentiment that his current coach, Mike Kelly, also feels when Oates eventually hits the lanes for the Wildcats.

“I know that he had several choices that he was interested in… I was happy for Billy, he is certainly heading into a great program in the Pac-12 and Arizona has always had a strong tradition of sprinters,” Kelly said. “I think he’s still got a whole lot of room for growth and improvement. I think as he gets older and matures, he’s going to bulk up and get even bigger and faster.”

According to Kelly, some of the best things that Oates does while swimming are the things that can’t be seen above the water.

The underwater part of swimming has become so important to shaving the precious seconds off their time, that swimmers have worked more and more on how well they turn and resurface.

Oates has seemingly nailed down this practice as when he pushes himself off the wall in a flip turn, he will come up from underneath the water nearly 15 yards away.

“At this point in his career, one of his real strong attributes is the underwater portions of his swim,” Kelly said. “In the last decade or two, it’s become an important component in competitive swimming…. At the state meet before he won the 100 backstroke, the person that was going to give him a hard time didn’t have as good of walls as he did.”

If there is one thing that defines Oates, it is his desire to win both individually and as a member of the swim team.

Again, he has already won state titles as a freshman and sophomore, but he didn’t win on just talent alone. He dedicates countless hours into being meticulous about his form and what he can do to improve it.

If Oates feels he underperformed in a race, he’ll study the film and make corrections.

“My parents never forced me to be competitive, I just fell in love with it,” Oates said. “I’ve been swimming for quite a while now and I always find a lot of joy in winning. If I don’t, I am always able to analyze my race and figure out what went wrong and fix that in the following event.”

He inspires his Tides’ teammates to do their best, setting an example in the pool for them to emulate.

And because they want to reach his level and have similar success, Oates has served as a key motivator on the team.

“He really commands a lot of attention from his teammates and they’re always cheering for him,” Kelly said. “They live vicariously in his successes and that pushes them to train harder and they watch what he’s doing. He’s a great motivator of the team both in training and in team spirit. He’s got a great sense of humor and he’s always kind to his teammates.”

When he gets to Arizona, Oates is looking forward to the specialized training that he’ll receive based on the events he chooses to compete in.

Because he’s a sprinter, he will require a different workout than what a long distance swimmer would get. Oates feels that specialized training will benefit him when he competes at the next level.

“I think I will have the opportunity to grow more, because I will have more individualized training,” he said. “On club teams or in high school, all the [people] on the team are running the same practice. There’s swimmers in those groups whose best event is the 1,650 while my best event is the 50… I think I’ll do much better in college with perfect training.”

Oates and the Tides still have a long way to go before they get a chance to return to the pool. With the current guidelines, they are slated to begin practice the week of Feb. 1 and begin competition the following week.

This story was originally published December 14, 2020 at 12:29 PM.