Zsófi Bévárdi’s Successful Stint at Fairmont State University
As the Fairmont State University swim teams recently wrapped up their regular season and championship weekend with both the Mountain East Conference and Great Midwest Athletic Conference, these student-athletes have a lot of success to reflect on. One of these student-athletes is Zsófi Bévárdi, a Dombóvár, Hungary native. She has been successful in the pool, the classroom, and life as a student-athlete at Fairmont State University.
Bévárdi has been swimming since she was around four years old. The swimming culture was very different in Hungary than it is in America. By the age of seven, Zsófi was swimming competitively. At that age, she was in the pool 300 days out of the year and was doing two workouts a day, six times a week. In addition to the time spent in the pool, she was still a full-time student trying to succeed in the classroom. She felt burnt out at a young age but was determined to continue her love for the sport.
Bévárdi eventually got in touch with former Fairmont State swim coach Pat Snively and liked what she saw from the swim team and the university’s academic side. She decided to fulfill her dreams of continuing her swimming career in the United States by starting at Fairmont State in August 2019.
While at Fairmont State, Zsófi racked up multiple All-MEC First and Second Team honors and numerous MEC Women’s Swimmer of the Week awards. She holds two Fairmont State school records in the 1650-yard and 100-yard individual events. In addition, she holds Feaster Center pool records in the 500-yard, 1650-yard, and 400-yard IM individual events. The women’s swim team has also gained many accolades for their time spent in the classroom, including a recent Scholar All-America Team award for the 2022 fall semester, announced by the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA).
She relates much of her success to her teammates and the culture that they have collectively built. “When I broke the school record in the 1650-yard event [in 2019], after I touched the wall, I turned around, and the whole swim team was cheering for me on the other side of the lane,” stated Bévárdi. She is incredibly grateful for having a family-like environment surrounding the pool. She hopes to have made a positive impact on the swim program and her teammates, just as they have done for her. She stressed the importance of motivating her teammates and creating a positive team atmosphere during her time at Fairmont State.
Upon graduating from the campus on the hill in May with a psychology major and a philosophy minor, Zsófi hopes to continue her education in a master’s program. Zsófi Bevardi has found a “new home away from home” in West Virginia and would love to stay.
