Venice High School offers an amazing opportunity for students to become student athletic trainers. Senior Ridhima Arora, a co-captain of Venice’s Sports Medicine team with senior Erik Hwang, gave The Oarsman a glimpse into what it’s like being on the team and also what game day is like for her. 

 What is it like for you on game day? 

I wear my Sports Med polo and black pants to show my pride for the team. Then during nutrition, I go into the Athletic Training Room to discuss what the plan is for the day, like what school we are playing, what sport we will do—if it will be varsity or JV, and also the positions we will have the team on.

During lunch, we have the team come in to help tape the athletes for JV or frosh or any sport that plays early or just athletes that want to do rehab before their game or preventive exercises. 

Then after we finish that, once the athletes go back to their locker room in that amount of time we start setting, making sure we have our backpacks of supplies, our ice chest ready, our AED, making sure our Rhino cart is stalked, our slings just in case for injuries on the field. 

Then I make sure everyone on the team knows their positions on the field. Lastly, once the game starts, we have to be alert just in case of any injuries that occur because we are the first responders.

How do you feel about working with your teammates? 

It makes me so sad because I have been on the team for four years, so I have seen so many people come and go, and now think I will be the one leaving. It’s so unbelievable.

I love this team so much. I have been raised by so many people and I also have raised so many people on this team.

I love the bond the team members have with each other just like every Friday we always do each others hair, face paint—it’s the connection we have all with each other. I have created new friends on this team not just because we are passionate about medicine. It’s just because we are so passionate about our lives and working towards something that will help us in the future.   

Everyone loves each other, we are always there for each other and we spend so many hours of the day together sometimes even more than what we spend with our own family at home, and that’s what makes us feel like family. 

I just love everyone so much we are all different and that’s what brings us together.