VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (WTKR)- Mothers pass down many things to their sons and daughters. Two area swimming standouts got their love of swimming from their moms and are getting ready to perform on a big stage.
Cason Wilburn graduated from First Colonial and currently swims for Notre Dame. He's qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 100 meter butterfly. Wilburn had a familiar face as his head coach in high school- his mother, Cassondre, who is still the head swim coach for the Patriots. She was a decorated swimmer during her college days at Old Dominion and currently leads Coastal Virginia Aquatic Club.
"I know that no matter how I swim, good or bad, that she's going to be proud of me, just with how far I've come," Cason said. "From that side of things, it's great and it's also another motivation to try and be the same as she was in college and live up to that."
"He was such a good kid," added Cassondre of coaching Cason in high school. "The freshmen kids would come in and he would escort them and help them out."
On the other side of the country, Kayla Wilson hits the pool at Stanford. She was a swimmer for Tide growing up and went to high school at Norfolk Academy. Wilson qualified for the Olympic Trials in the 100 meter and 200 meter freestyle events, a stage that is not foreign to her family. Her mother, Katy, competed in the trials during the prime of her career.
"It's a little bit of a tightrope," explained Katy, who was president of Tide Swimming from 2011-2022. "As a parent, having done the sport, you sometimes know too much so I think the balance of any parent who's done a sport and has a child doing the sport is how do you strike that balance between being the mom and just being supporting and saying it's fun and enjoy it and leaving it to the coaches."
Both Kayla and Cason have been to the trials before so they have a better idea of what to expect. The previous experience and how much she's grown has the Stanford rising sophomore aiming high.
"I think my first time around it was definitely like 'OK, I'm here for the experience,'" she noted. "I think next year my goal will definitely be to make the team."
As for Wilburn, the upcoming season will be his fifth and final year in the pool for the Fighting Irish. He expects the Olympic Trials to be his swansong.
"My goal is to just kind of go out smiling," he said. "I just want to be happy. If I make a semifinal, if I make a final, great. I'll be super happy about that, but at the same time if I just go out there, hit the wall and I feel like I accomplished just a great career, I'll be happy with that."
The 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials hit the pool from June 15-23 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
