Carter Hiley, a high school swimming sensation on Central’s swimming team, has already broken multiple school and Omaha Public Schools records and is currently aiming for national recognition. 

The records he owns are in the 200-yard individual medley at one minute, 56.36 seconds and the 100-yard freestyle at 46.40 seconds. He placed third and fourth in those events at the state meet last year. Hiley also qualified for Speedo Junior National Championships, which will be in July.  

The 200 IM is a race in competitive swimming in which swimmers compete in all four strokes (butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle) in one race. The 100 freestyle is a race where competitors swim 100 yards using the front crawl stroke, which is the fastest and most efficient stroke in competitive swimming. 

Hiley, now a junior, began swimming lessons in first grade to join his best friend at the swimming club. Hiley has only gotten better since then and he never wanted to stop.  

There have been a few roadblocks in Hiley’s path as a swimmer. Swim training was bought to a stop by quarantine in 2020, when he was in middle school. “I lost out on two years of important training,” Hiley said. Middle school is a crucial time for boys, especially the development of muscles. Another roadblock for Hiley was spraining his MCL and dislocated his kneecap while skiing in August of 2023. However, even throughout the process of physical therapy, he still swam. 

“He works really hard, sometimes I have to tell him to cool off, because he’ll work through sickness,” head coach Kristoff Berzins said.  

Hiley’s current goal is to do well at the NSAA meet and Speedo Sectionals. His fastest time of the season as of Feb. 7 was 48.98 in the 100 free and 2:02.32 in the IM. 

 “That is my last opportunity to put up good short course times – think terms of college recruiting,” Hiley said.  

The NSAA state meet takes place Feb. 23., in Lincoln, and the Speedo Sectionals begin March 13.