The beginning of the school year marked a special moment for twin sisters Haley and Katelyn Reis. A few weeks ago, they participated in their first swimming meet of the season. 

“It’s really nice to be around a ton of people, it is very energetic too,” swimmer Katelyn Reis said.  

“After every meet, I always have a sense of like relief because I am proud of what I did,” swimmer Haley Reis said. 

 From a young age, the Reis sisters have enjoyed being in the water. 

“Swimming is a good skill to have, it’s nice to be able to be in the water without feeling afraid,” Haley Reis added.  

The freshman sisters are currently under the instruction of swimming coach Juan Dominguez. He’s been a leader in the sport for more than three decades. 

“Believe it or not, it’s been such a long time that I have not only coached some kids, but now I have coached some of their kids as well,” swim coach Juan Dominguez said. 

 For the Reis sisters, Dominguez actually coached their uncle, on their moms' side. 

“He was my brother's coach in high school, and he was always just part of this legacy, getting kids to swim and a lot of our students never learned to swim so they didn’t have the opportunity to go swim,” Hartford parent Claudia Cruz-Reis said. 

Advocating for access to swimming resources in Hartford and for kids of all backgrounds to join the sport has always been at the core of Dominguez’s work. 

He was born in the Canary Islands and came to Hartford at just 6 years old, only speaking Spanish. 

“I learned to swim, and my instructor spoke to me in English only. I did not know what she was saying to me at all,” Dominguez said. 

Dominguez instantly fell in love with the sport and knew he wanted to give back to the community that helped him swim in high school and at the collegiate level at Southern Connecticut State University.

“It just has a whole lot of different places the sport will take if that is what you wish for,” Dominguez explained. 

Over the last 30 years, Dominguez has coached countless students and has advocated for accessibility, no matter what language swimmers speak or what level they are at. 

“They [the students] have never seen a swimming pool, from some of the countries that they come from. I taught them right from the shallow end, little by little, they start at level 1 swimming, to probably level 6 and they become successful swimmers,” Dominquez said. 

The lack of diversity in the sport is something his students have noticed. 

“I do think there aren’t a lot of people who are Latino or Hispanic and they don’t get to learn how to swim because there isn’t opportunity for them to. So, I would like to see a lot more people joining swim teams,” Katelyn Reis said. 

Dominguez also would like to see the sport grow in the capital city. 

“I would love to bring back a heavy load of numbers of swim teams back to Hartford,” Dominguez added. 

As for his current and past swimmers, he always considers them family. 

"He keeps them together and he is a great coach," Cruz-Reis said.

“There is going to be good days and bad days but at the end of the day we are sticking together as one,” Dominguez said.