While the ordinary Becton athlete has an affinity for football, wrestling, or baseball, some students stray away from the beaten path. Junior Amer Hassan, for instance, spends his free time swimming for Columbia University.

At nine years old, his passion for swimming began to develop through his involvement in a water polo team. Later on in life, he joined the Hackensack High School Boys Swim Team, where he was eventually recruited for the Columbia University Youth Team.

“[Swimming] is harder than most [high school] sports because not many schools around here have their own pools,” said Amer. Although the demanding practices and frequent traveling that come with swimming make it difficult for Amer to have any free time, he still manages to work a part-time job, play soccer for Becton, and devote time to academics.

His participation in the Columbia University Youth Team has improved his swimming skills greatly. Starting on fourth team and working his way up to second team, Amer’s personal best in the 200 yard freestyle in now 142 seconds. He also swims the butterfly, but refers to the freestyle as his favorite.

As a swimmer for Columbia, Amer is one of the future nominees for the college team. Although he is keeping Columbia in mind, he said, “I’m not set on anything because there still might be better options out there.”