Sports Spotlight - Windermere Observer: Alex Kaiser

Dr. Phillips High senior Alex Kaiser has had plenty of success in the pool and outside of it during his time on campus. Kaiser, a standout in swimming, diving and water polo, recently became the first student-athlete in Panthers history to earn Academic All-American honors in three sports.

What’s it like to find out you’ve been recognized as an Academic All-American?

It’s great. It feels like everything is starting to pay off, getting recognition.

Why do you value academics and work so hard at having success in the classroom?

Getting into college and making sure that’s a secure option, that I can get into bigger schools that I want to get into.

Conversely, why do you value athletics?

It takes your mind off studying, for sure. It’s like a de-stresser for me, going to practice after school and putting in some hard work.

Do you know where you’re going to go to college?

Most likely UF. My mother went there and they’ve got a great engineering program and student life.

What’s the athletic accomplishment you’re most proud of?

I would say we just broke the school record for consecutive wins in water polo. That felt pretty good.

What do you enjoy about swimming, diving and water polo, respectively?

Diving, I love because it probably looks the coolest. Water polo, I love it because it’s a great team sport and you have a lot of fun with your friends. Swimming is great because it really shows you how much practice pays off because of the small decreases in your time.

What’s been your favorite class at Dr. Phillips over the years?

I’d say calculus with Mr. (Gregory) Keith — I’ve had him for three years in pre-calculus, calculus AB and calculus BC.

Why do you enjoy calculus?

I’ve always been good at math, and to start working on problems that you can see translate into the real world is kind of cool.

What are you hoping to major in?

Engineering. Off the top of my head, I’m not sure (which discipline) yet. I’m going to do an introductory class, but it’s looking like mechanical (engineering) right now.

What draws you to the field of engineering?

My father was an engineer and my brother was one, too.

What’s your favorite sport to watch on television?

Football. Green Bay is my favorite pro team because that’s where my dad is from, and then UF is my favorite college team because my mom went there.

If you were stuck on an island with a television, a Blu-Ray player and only one movie, which movie would you choose?

That’s a tough one. I would say “Lord of the Rings” — the last one. “Return of the King.”

If you could travel anywhere, where would you go?

I would say Africa. They’ve got cool animals there. It would be cool to see an elephant — those things are massive.