For the month of January, Lehman College’s Men’s Swimming and Diving and Outdoor Track athlete Chris Mammano has been named the CUNYAC/Hospital for Special Surgery Men’s Scholar-Athlete of the Month. The senior, enrolled in the Mccauley Honors College, has contributed on the track, in the community and classroom.
Mammano has compiled an incredible GPA of 3.99. The two-sport athlete has been named Presidential Scholar every semester he has attended at Lehman. An accomplish poet, his work has been published in multiple collegiate literary journals, in both English and Spanish. The senior has plans to become trilingual as he juggles his studies by majoring in Russian and completing a minor in Spanish. The Flushing native has taken on translating and rhyming the Russian poetry of Alexander Blok as his thesis project.
“In relation to academics and athletics, I have always considered the two to be joined,” said Mammano. “Swimming has instilled discipline within me and has taught me the merit of hard work and persistence. My education has always been of prime importance, but swimming forced me to make better use of my time and gave me the confidence to hone my skills in other fields. Simply put, both sport and academia require an equal level discipline; they both complement each other and jointly yield rewarding opportunities and possibilities.”
Aside from his literary work, Mammano has found time to volunteer as a swim instructor at the Bronx House, and read poetry at schools and nursing homes all over Long Island.
Coach Pieter Kiernan stated, “Chris is a hard worker and a great competitor who is an asset to his team. I’m proud of what he’s accomplished.”
The dual-athlete has shown above-par results in the pool. As a freestyle swimmer, he took part in the CUNYAC Swimming & Diving Championships where he finished in the top five in four out of his five events to help Lehman take first place.
With the spring season coming up, Mammano hopes to continue his athletic success in the javelin throw for Lehman’s Men’s Outdoor Track & Field team.