Freshman Yvonne Botha swims. Courtesy | Yvonne Botha

Freshman Yvonne Botha traveled more than 8,000 miles from South Africa to southern Michigan to take advantage of both the academic and athletic opportunities in America that were unavailable in her native country.

Botha is from Limpopo, South Africa, the northernmost province of a country known for its abundant wildlife and cultural heritage.

“It’s a little tropical paradise, surrounded by mountains,” Botha said. “There’s a lot of bananas, citrus, mangos, and lychee.”

Botha recalled her childhood, during which she spent months in the neighboring countries of Zimbabwe and Mozambique with her father and brother. They went on wildlife trips and played on the beach in one of South Africa’s rare safe spaces for children.

Attending Hillsdale College is Botha’s first long-term trip outside the African continent. 

One factor in Botha’s decision to attend Hillsdale was the college’s swim team. 

Botha said she swam competitively since the 8th grade, when her school coach told her she should train properly.

According to Botha, her best event is the 100-meter backstroke, in which she won her regional championship in 2023 and placed sixth at the South African School Nationals in 2022. She also competes in the 50-meter backstroke and 200-meter breaststroke.

“There are more opportunities in America for me to improve my education and to improve my swimming,” Botha said. “It was kind of a no-brainer because if I had the opportunity, I might as well take it.”

Her older sister, Carmen Botha, attended Hillsdale College as a member of the track team. Yvonne Botha said she had already heard about the college, its values, and its culture. 

“I think it’s just because Hillsdale is better for me,” Botha said. “It reflects my personality a little better. It’s a smaller school, I like the morals and code of honor. It was just very similar to what I grew up with, it felt a little more like I would fit in and feel at home.”

Botha said she felt welcomed by the student body, faculty, and her swim team.

Head swim coach Kurt Kirner said Botha has the potential to be a great asset to the team. 

“She’s only been in the pool two days for me,” Kirner said. “But I do think she has the opportunity to be a contributor on the team. She’s got a lot of improving to do but she seems like a great kid.”

Kirner said he was introduced to Botha through Diane Philipp, Hillsdale’s vice president of student affairs. Philipp said she sometimes assists admissions and coaches with recruiting students.

“Their mom called me last year to say hello after Yvonne applied to Hillsdale,” Philipp said. “Coach Kirner learned about her talents and communicated with the family. The Bothas are a lovely family, and we are excited to have Yvonne here.”

Kirner said he did not have as much time to speak with her as he normally does with prospective student-athletes. 

“When I did talk to her, she seemed like a coachable kid,” Kirner said.“She asked questions. She seemed curious. The idea that she has the capacity to learn is very important to me.”

Kirner cited the differences between American and international swimming techniques as something Botha might have trouble adjusting to, which Botha confirmed.

“The construction of the swim practices compared to swim practices at home are very different,” Botha said. “The way they name certain drills and phrase it on the program is different. These first three practices, my biggest hurdle has been trying to understand what’s on the program.” 

Her home team had practiced technical skills but Botha said she does not have the experience with the conditioning and technical drills that the Hillsdale team does.

“Here you use snorkels, but there we didn’t use snorkels or anything,” Botha said. “I can see how it can help, using the tools, but I haven’t figured out how to use it well enough for it to be beneficial to me.”

Botha also said in South Africa they never lifted weights. However, at Hillsdale, the team does lifting and conditioning exercises to strengthen arms, legs, shoulders, and core.

“My body is sore in muscles I did not know I had,” Botha said.

Outside of her time in the pool, Botha said she is enjoying her classes.

“All the professors are very nice, and you can feel that they really want to teach you,” Botha said. “It’s really refreshing. Because you feel the teacher wants to teach you, you want to sit there and learn.”

Although she is enjoying her time at Hillsdale, she said she does miss home sometimes.

“I do miss my mom, my boyfriend, my sister, and my sister’s kids,” Botha said. 

Though Botha said she will probably go back to South Africa after her four years of college, for now she is focused on improving in the classroom and in the pool.