Eddie Grimes is as versatile a swimmer as they come.
The James Wood junior stood atop the area leaderboards in 2026, placing first among local talent in six individual events while also helping the Colonels record the fastest time in all three relays.
Though Grimes impressed in the 50 free, 500 free, 100 fly and 200 IM, he found the most success in the 100 free and 200 free. At the Class 4 state meet, he earned two medals by placing second in the 100-yard free with a season-best time of 47.28 seconds and fifth in the 200 free with a personal record of 1:42.91. He also helped the Colonels’ 400 and 200 free relays place 11th and 12th, respectively.
Because of performances like these, Grimes is The Winchester Star Boys’ Swimmer of the Year.
Grimes said he trained “a lot harder” this season and that getting ample reps helped him find success in so many events.
“I just try to build my endurance up,” Grimes said. “Weight training also helps, definitely, with endurance and strength and power. I go to FASST [Performance Training]. They’ve helped me a lot. Ever since I started going there, I’ve definitely been getting better at sprints.”
Grimes’ improvement in faster races was clear after his performance at states. Though he placed first in the 500 free at this year’s Region 4D meet and finished fourth at last year’s Class 4 meet, Grimes and Colonels head coach Jessica Barr determined he’d have a better shot at winning the 100 free at states.
“We were kind of going back and forth … ultimately, we did a little bit of research to see how his time would compare to the results from last year and what other swimmers would be in those particular events,” Barr said. “We ultimately all decided, ‘Let’s go for the 100 free.’ Because in high school swimming, the 100 free and the 500 free are back-to-back events, so he had to pick one or the other.”
Grimes said, “I remember when I was getting ready for my 100 free [at states], both in the morning and at night, I just really wanted to win. One of my goals that I made was that I wanted to be a state champ. And it was just something I thought about every time I trained, and every time I got in the pool. I know I didn’t get it, but I was real close, and it just makes me want to drive for next year.”
Though Grimes didn’t stand atop the podium at states, he did earn the right to swim at a national level. His career-best time in the 200 free qualified him for the NCSA Spring Swimming Championships in Orlando, Fla., from March 17-21.
There, he eclipsed two high school personal bests by clocking in at 22.12 in the 50 free prelims and 54.86 in the 100 back prelims. He also competed in the 100 and 200 free prelims, peaking at 167th place in the 100.
Grimes said finding success in the 200 free at states was important to him because it’s his favorite event to compete in.
“It’s not too long and it’s not too short, and it’s one of my best events,” Grimes said. “So when I finally got a cut in that event [to advance to nationals], it felt really great.”
Grimes’ ability to impress in various events didn’t come without hard work. In addition to his many hours at high school practice, he logs even more as a member of the Winchester Swim Team, a year-round club team he’s been with for “eight or nine years.”
Barr, who also serves as an assistant coach for the Winchester Swim Team, said she and Trey Shafer, the club’s head coach, have worked closely with Grimes to map out his training regimen both during and outside of the high school season. She said that as Grimes has gotten older, he’s become increasingly motivated to set goals for himself that his coaches can help him reach.
“I actually swam under Trey, so Trey and I have a very long historical relationship through the sport of swimming,” Barr said. “Those practices often are before or after our high school practices, so a lot of times Eddie would be finishing one and we’d be starting our James Wood practice, so I’d have some time to kind of communicate with Eddie and Trey.
“I think [Grimes] really became reflective on exactly what his goals were going to be for this season. And from the very beginning of the season, he told me what he wanted and what he was hoping to accomplish.”
Grimes has been swimming since he was 5, and has participated in club swimming since he was 7 while living in Florida. He continued club swim when he moved to Delaware, before joining the Winchester Swim Team shortly after moving to Virginia in fourth grade.
The club has been a crucial part of his swimming journey, and he said having that extra outlet to improve has paid dividends.
“Those practices, they’re just longer … I get more practice time in, I can get better sets in and things like that,” Grimes said. “And [Shafer] is a good coach, so he helps me get better.”
Grimes credited Barr and Shafer for helping mold him into the competitor he is today, but also said some of his former high school and club teammates set examples he wanted to follow.
He named two James Wood graduates, four-time state champion Joe Warnagiris and Paul Warnagiris, and Jefferson High School (West Virginia) graduate Nick Lugo as three swimmers who inspired him. Lugo currently swims at Division I West Virginia, Paul competes at Division II Lynn University and Joe will swim for Division I University of Missouri next season after taking a gap year in 2025-26.
“I’ve had people to look up to and people I took notes from and wanted to be like,” Grimes said. “Having role models definitely helped me get better.”
Barr said she believes Joe was especially “a very big motivator” for Grimes.
“Eddie was able to watch Joe’s work ethic and kind of take some characteristics of it and apply that to his own work ethic and his commitment to the sport,” Barr said. “And I think that he really grew his ability to also be a leader and help other members of our team.
“There were many times when [Grimes] would come to practice and he would spend most of the practice as almost like another coach, or he would find someone and say, ‘Hey, I noticed this, and here’s some feedback for you,’ and we just really appreciated that. And I think the other swimmers really connected more with him on that peer level, and appreciated the feedback and the help that he was able to give his teammates.”
With a strong support system around him, Grimes’ swimming career has taken off. Heading into his senior year, he still has goals he wants to fulfill.
He said he’s as motivated as ever to become a state champion after his second-place finish this winter, but added that he’s also hoping to find the right fit so that he can swim in college, similar to his former teammates.
“I definitely want to be state champ, so I’ve got to work towards that,” Grimes said. “I want to be able to swim in college. It’s something I really want to do. So it’s one of my goals to make it to a college in Florida. The University of Tampa, I went to that campus not too long ago, and it was really nice. They have a really good team, but if I want to go there, I’ve got to work really, really hard.”
— Contact Joe Tuman at jtuman@winchesterstar.com
Follow him on X @jtuman21