As Oak Park and River Forest High School students get ready to say goodbye to the East Pool, the OPRF boy’s swim and dive team refused to leave without breaking records at their final meet.

OPRF’s East Pool, constructed in 1928, will be demolished as the school undergoes Project 2 renovations. The $102-million reconstruction of the school’s athletic wing will begin this summer. The two pools at OPRF will be replaced by a 25-by-
40-yard pool with 10 lanes, in addition to a large balcony capable of seating more than 400 onlookers.

However, OPRF’s swim and dive team wasn’t ready to leave the 96-year-old pool without a bang. On Jan. 19, junior Pablo Pajera broke the 2021 record set by Diego Pajera, his older brother, of 51.13 in the 100-yard backstroke. Pablo Pajera will now forever hold the East Pool record with a time of 50.60.

That night Pajera didn’t only break the 100-yard backstroke record, but he was also on the 200-yard medley relay alongside junior Will Keyes and seniors Adan Pedraza and Lars Rauch, who broke the pool’s record of 1:34.21 with a time of 1:33.83.

As the swim meets in the East Pool have come to a close, the lasting impact of the records set on Jan. 19 will serve as a demonstration of “Those Things That Are Best.”