Annika Parkhe is a stellar swimmer and student here at Deerfield High School. She recently committed to Stanford to continue her academic and athletic careers. Stanford’s swimming program is repeatedly one of the top teams in the country every year. They just got even better with the addition of Deerfield’s own Parkhe.
Parkhe is full of excitement to start her tenure with Stanford. She has wanted to be a student-athlete for a long time, and doing so at a top academic institution is a massive accomplishment. Parkhe got into swimming at a young age due to her parents’ inclination to put her into a very safe sport, and she’s very grateful they did as she is now a top state competitor. Parkhe just won the 2023 Illinois state competition for the 100-meter freestyle and 100-meter backstroke.
When it comes to swimming, Parkhe’s grind never stops. Parkhe says that she “will swim twice every day. Before school, we will always swim or lift and after school, we will swim. Weekends we will have meets. Swimming is kind of a weird sport because it never has an off-season.” On top of competing for the Warriors, Parkhe swims on a competitive travel team, named PAC (Patriot Aquatic Club), in the northern suburbs that is very selective and competes nationally. She says, “This past summer we went to Fargo and two summers ago I went to junior nationals.” The back-and-forth travel Parkhe goes through to swim truly shows how dedicated she is to swimming.
Parkhe is not the only Deerfield Warrior who swims competitively. One of the students on her team is Junior, Erika Ilkiu. Ilkiu says, “We are on the same club team, I see her year-round, She’s the best. She’s such an amazing person. She cares about everyone. She will motivate everyone.” Parkhe’s devotion to her teammates speaks to the fact that she wants to build a positive and friendly community within the team, rather than just strictly business.
Annika Parkhe has not just been competing in swimming her whole life, but she’s also an active fan of the sport. She is inspired by dozens of swimmers, but some of the more notable ones are, “The fast swimmers like Katie Ledecki, Michael Phelps and the talented college swimmers like Reagan Smith, Tory Husk.” All of these talented swimmers give Parkhe inspiration to become one of the best by giving her a view on what it looks like to be a professional at the sport. Stanford may be a few months away for this star, but she knows what she got herself into. Parkhe visited the team and got to know some of the players. She said she chose Stanford to further her academic and athletic career because, “My main priority was academics with a strong swim program. I spent time with Stanford’s team and I really like the culture, atmosphere, and the location is good.” Parkhe was looking for a college that had well-acclaimed athletics and academics. For her, it only made sense that Stanford would become her new home. She plans to stay committed to swimming at Stanford for all four years.
What does Annika Parkhe mean to the swim team? “Everything” -Teammate Erika Ilkiu
Already an accomplished swimmer, Parkhe just added one more thing to her trophy stand on November 11th – a state win. She placed first in the state for the 100 meter freestyle and 100 meter backstroke. Although she already has earned trophies like this, it was a much more meaningful experience as her senior season of swimming on the Warrior team. Congratulations to Annika Parkhe and good luck moving onto the collegiate level. Without a doubt, Annika Parkhe has etched her name into the Warrior Athletics Hall of Fame.
