Kinston’s Ryan Henderson Signs with ACC Powerhouse Louisville for Swimming
KINSTON — What began as a brief dip in the pool at age 10 has turned into a life-changing opportunity for Kinston’s Ryan Henderson.
The standout swimmer officially signed a scholarship with the University of Louisville, an Atlantic Coast Conference powerhouse in the sport of swimming and diving. With the ink dry and a red Cardinals cap atop his head, Henderson cemented his place among the top swimmers in the country—and among Kinston’s elite athletic success stories.
“I was thrilled and relieved when I signed,” Henderson said. “All my hard work and effort was cemented, and I was going to one of the top swim schools in the nation.”
A home-schooled student-athlete, Henderson’s journey to the Division I level didn’t follow the traditional blueprint. Unlike many elite swimmers who dive into year-round training before reaching double digits in age, Henderson didn’t get serious about the sport until much later.
“I swam for just a year in Kinston when I was 10, but didn’t start to train as a competitive swimmer until my junior year of high school at age 16,” Henderson said. “The vast majority of competitive swimmers who go D1 start well before the age of 10. This pushed me in practice every day.”
From his home in Kinston, Henderson regularly made the early morning drive to Greenville to train with East Carolina Aquatics, often waking at 4:30 a.m. to get in the water. Some weeks, he trained more than 20 hours, balancing early-morning swims, evening sessions, and weight room workouts.
“However, the hardest thing to overcome was forfeiting a normal life and schedule,” he said.
That commitment and sacrifice paid off. Henderson, a two-time Junior National Finalist, North Carolina State Champion, and Scholastic All-American, currently holds the third-fastest time in the U.S. for his age group in the 50-meter freestyle (22.93). He also received offers from the University of Tennessee and Indiana before ultimately choosing the Cardinals.
“I’d like to thank my coach Casey Charles for putting up with me day in and day out, my parents for their unwavering support, and the coaching staff at Louisville Swim and Dive for the opportunity they’ve given me,” Henderson said.
With one of the nation’s top swim programs awaiting him, Henderson has proven that late starts and early mornings can still lead to big-time results.
