The stopwatch tells one a part of Aiden Stivers’ story.

Since making his Para swimming debut in 2022, the U.S. Para Swimming U23 National Team member has lowered his occasions, damaged American information and represented Team USA on the worldwide stage. But the largest change occurred outdoors the pool, the place he discovered a group that helped form him as each an athlete and an individual.

Before Para swimming, Stivers questioned the place he match. Three years later, he is a two-time American file holder, world championships crew member and future collegiate swimmer—not as a result of the whole lot modified in a single day, however as a result of he discovered a spot the place he belonged.

“I felt more welcome,” Stivers mentioned. “I was able to compete with people with the same disabilities as me. I didn’t feel like I was one step behind everybody.”

That sense of belonging modified greater than his outlook. It modified the way in which he approached the game.

“I wasn’t really focused on why I started swimming,” Stivers mentioned. “I enjoy swimming and I enjoy competing. Once I honed into that, that’s where I started to see the most results.”

The newfound confidence quickly translated into outcomes. Stivers set his first American file within the SB9 200-meter breaststroke in 2023 and lowered it the next 12 months, whereas additionally competing on the 2024 U.S. Paralympics Swimming Team Trials.

After lacking the Paris 2024 Paralympic Team, Stivers continued coaching whereas rediscovering the enjoyment that first drew him to the game.

The breakthrough got here in 2025. Stivers earned a spot on his first world championships crew, represented Team USA in Singapore, set American information in each the 100- and 200-meter breaststroke and dedicated to proceed each his educational and swimming careers on the University of St. Thomas.

“Making the world team was a big stepping stone, realizing I was able to do this,” Stivers mentioned. “It felt like this is something I can keep doing, which pushed me to just work harder in the pool.”

Making the world championships crew gave Stivers one other alternative to expertise the tradition that had drawn him to Para swimming within the first place. At coaching camp and later in Singapore, the athletes he had as soon as admired from afar turned teammates.

“At the camp for world championships, I was really nervous to talk to my teammates because obviously they’re Paralympians,” Stivers mentioned. “But once we got to Singapore, they were so nice. I was able to hang out with them and see that they’re actual normal people that I’m able to become friends with.”

Among these teammates had been Paralympians Grace Nuhfer and Keegan Knott, who, not way back, had been rising stars themselves. What started as admiration rapidly became friendship, giving Stivers one other reminder that Para swimming is outlined as a lot by its group as its competitors.

“You’re not necessarily competing against them, you’re competing with them,” Stivers mentioned. ” Even if I don’t have the race I wanted, I still get to celebrate my teammates because we’re all on the same team. When one of us wins, it almost feels like we all do.”

Competing alongside among the sport’s largest names solely strengthened that he belonged on the identical stage. The expertise additionally gave Stivers a greater understanding of himself as an athlete.

“At camp before worlds, we spent a lot of time learning how my disability affects my swimming and what I can do to improve. Sometimes I forget that I’m disabled, especially in able-bodied swimming. Para swimming reminds me that I don’t have to put all that pressure on myself.”

The timing could not be higher. Following a breakthrough 2025 season, Stivers will reunite with a coach he first watched on the Team USA workers earlier than starting his collegiate profession on the University of St. Thomas. Along with continued expertise on the U.S. Para Swimming U23 National Team, the following two years provide a perfect runway towards the LA28 Paralympic Games—the primary Paralympic Games held within the United States since Atlanta 1996.

Those who’ve shared the pool deck with him consider his affect already extends past his outcomes.

“Aiden brings a lot of energy to the pool deck,” Paralympian and silver medalist Grace Nuhfer mentioned. “In a space with so many veterans, it’s grounding and exciting to see someone come onto the scene with a fresh set of goals and the drive to get there. He reminds us of the younger versions of ourselves and, especially at worlds, he was an amazing cheerleader and teammate who kept the momentum strong throughout the meet. I’m so excited to see where he goes in the future. He has a lot to look forward to.”

It’s the legacy Stivers hopes to depart.

“I want to be remembered not necessarily for my swimming, but for who I am as a person and how that helped me achieve different things,” Stivers mentioned. “I want to leave behind a legacy of kindness.”

If the teammates round him are any indication, he is already doing simply that.