Donovan Chan

Could you let us know who you are, what sports you play, your major or focus? 

My name is Donovon Chan. My major is clinical nutrition and that has always been my focus since high school. I haven’t always played water polo, but I’ve always been an athlete playing different sports, especially competitive swimming. In high school I was very hungry to get better, so I spent a lot of time researching ways to optimize my performance, and diet and nutrition is where I found a lot of interest. I took that and ran with it, and see it now as a potential career since it’s already a passionate hobby.

That's awesome. Let’s talk about your high school background a little more. Did you always know you were going to be a water polo player?

I didn’t. My brother, fortunately, played water polo starting his junior year in high school, and I remember him telling me he regrets not starting earlier. We had both been swimmers for a long time, swimming on competitive teams since we were six years old, training with current and future olympians, and getting great coaching. The downside of swimming is that it can be a grind - swimming wall - to - wall and staring at a black line - it takes a certain person to stay focused and passionate for their whole career. Water polo on the other hand, is a team sport and involves a ball like other sports, so freshman year I fell in love and got hungry to learn again, knowing I would have to start from scratch and play catch-up to my teammates. As a strong swimmer I understood the swimming requirements of the sport but had to learn water polo specific skills. Even though I didn’t get a lot of playing time, my coach put me on varsity so I could watch and practice against talented players to hopefully speed up my learning.

I think a lot of athletes can relate to your situation, when did the hard work start paying off? 

Sophomore year of high school I started to blossom. My mentality of hard-work and grinding from swimming carried over to water polo and helped me excel in the sport because I was always hungry to get better; always asking questions and trying to improve. I was generally curious, trying to learn every detail. I wanted to know why we practiced certain skills and how it translated to being a better player.

So, did you stop swimming when you committed to water polo or were you splitting time between sports?

My high school swim coach was also my water polo, as well as my club swim and water polo coach, and he was primarily a swimmer so I skewed towards more swimming and conditioning and less water polo simply because I was so beat from multiple practices a day. When I decided to play for DVC I wanted to take the opportunity to focus 100 percent on water polo because of the commitment it would take to play at a higher level.

Ok. You’re full-time with water polo as well as a full-time student - could you give us some clarification on your academic situation because I heard it’s rather atypical. Are you a student at UC Davis, DVC, or both, and how does DVC water polo fit in?

Sure. Due to the pandemic, college rosters have a huge backup of fifth-year seniors and incoming freshmen on their rosters so there is a lot of competition for those spots. I got the bad luck of not being offered a spot, but I still wanted to play competitively while attending Davis’s School with the hope of joining the water polo for the 2022 season. The options were club water polo at Davis or playing with DVC. The coaching, competition and resources at DVC was ultimately the deciding factor for me. Coach De Trane came up with a solution that allowed me to take classes at both DVC and Davis, giving me eligibility to play the fall season with Vikings while not jeopardizing anything with UC Davis Athletics or Academics. It means more work and commuting on my part, but I’m no stranger to the grind and relish the opportunity.

That’s a great attitude to have both in water polo and life, and with that said, we did cover a lot of ground so I’ll finish up with a final question. Do you have any advice for current student-athletes, either athletically or academically, to get where they want to be? 

I think when people take a superficial look at me, they think “grind, grind, grind, polo is my life,” and as passionate and obsessed I am with the sport, I know that being a student comes first. Water polo ends, but your life doesn’t - to have a more worldly approach as a student and as an athlete is super important as you progress through your career. As a result, I think you become a better person and better athlete. I think some people take it so seriously that they can’t take a step back and assess their own situation, and when the time ends to be an athlete or student, they’re devastated and lost. Water polo can be everything now, but understand there is a future ahead of you.

Well said Donovan. Thank you for the time, we look forward to seeing you in the water this season!