Catherine McGovern

McGovern waterskiing in her neighborhood lake.

Leah McGovern is currently a sophomore here at Neumann. She recently joined our family after moving from FBA. Outside of school she likes to practice volleyball, but she has another passionate sport, waterskiing.

When did you start water skiing and why? Did someone inspire you?

McGovern started water skiing when she was about 6-years-old. She has 3 older brothers who she looks up to, and enjoys partaking in things that they do. Following in her brothers’ footsteps, she took up waterskiing and fell in love with it.

Where do you waterski?

McGovern’s house is located in a beautiful neighborhood that surrounds a lake. Her house’s backyard contains a doc and a boat which is where she waterskis. She also enjoys partaking in other water sports. She has several different types of water-sport boards such as wakeboards and tubes.

How do you incorporate water skiing into everyday life?

Every summer McGovern takes time off her personal schedule to teach waterskiing to kids at camp. She loves to see kids smile when they finally succeed at the sport. She doesn’t get paid for volunteering, but she doesn’t mind because she is doing it for her love of the sport. She creates strong bonds with the kids she’s teaching through the trust that they have in her.

What do you love most about waterskiing?

McGovern responds that she loves multiple things about the sport. First of all, it is something that she grew up doing with family. It’s a family tradition, and she loves being able to feel the joy that her family gets from the sport. It lets her spend valuable time with her family, and strengthens her relationship with them. Second, she loves taking her friends on her boat and being able to present something new to them that they have probably never done before: “The vibes are always fun and it’s the ideal day, friends and boating.”

Why do you water ski? 

McGovern was introduced to waterskiing by her family, but why does she keep it up?

She likes to keep up with sport because it keeps her physically fit and strengthens her core. She also enjoys the distraction the sport brings to her. McGovern shares, “My dad wants me to start doing competitions for waterskiing, but I don’t do it to compete. It gives me a fun escape from everyday stresses, and gives me something else to focus on. It also challenges me physically and mentally to get better at an activity.”

What is the hardest part about the sport?

McGovern believes that the hardest part about water skiing is trying a new thing and not getting it right away. She says it took her a while to learn and constantly failing was difficult to accept, but she feels that it creates determination and perseverance. McGovern believes the best word to describe waterskiing is ‘relaxing’: “I don’t know how to explain it, but it means relaxing.”

Do you plan on incorporating the sport into your future?

McGovern will continue teaching waterskiing at camp, but she doesn’t see this going anywhere as far as a career. She says it is just an extracurricular activity. McGovern does say however, that she wants to pass this down to her future children: “I look forward to teaching my children how to waterski. I hope they enjoy it as much as I did. I’m excited that I will get to pass it down and keep the family tradition alive.”

McGovern is excited to continue improving at this sport and to see how far she can advance. She also looks forward to sharing the passion with her children in the future, but for now she will just have to keep sharing the passion with the people around her, like she does everyday.