Though he's qualified for the Class 2A State Boys' Swimming Championships in the 200 individual medley, Lynden senior Moses Kim is a sprinter by nature, Lions coach Steve Gibb said - especially in the 100 butterfly and 100 breaststroke, in which he's also qualified for state.

"He's good in the 200 IM, but he's more of a dynamo," Gibb said in a phone interview. "He can sprint. Of course he kind of has to do everything faster."

Kim is one of a handful of Lynden Christian swimmers that swim with Lynden in a co-op arrangement. While that wouldn't seem to put Kim and the other LC swimmers at a disadvantage, with the pool at the Lynden YMCA just down the street, it actually does create some difficulties for practice.

Classes at Lynden Christian typically let out about a half hour later than across town at Lynden High School, and with the tight schedule at the Y, Gibb can't hold off the start practice and wait for everybody to arrive.

"The LC guys probably get only about an hour and a half in the pool a day, which means after they warm up, they probably only get about an hour of hard training," Gibb said. "That means they're getting only five, six, seven hours a week, where everybody else is getting 10. Everything they're doing, they have to do faster than the other guys."

You're not likely going to hear Kim complaining about the adversity, though.

"It's not that bad," he said in a phone interview. "When we get there, all the guys are already swimming. The Lynden guys are done warming up. While they're swimming fast, we just have to do our warm ups quickly and start swimming with them. It is difficult, but I try to make up for the time I missed on my own (in open swim times at the YMCA)."

Plus Kim has overcome much greater difficulties than simply missing a half hour of practice.

Kim is from Pyoungtaek, South Korea, a small city located in the Gyeonggi Province, about an hour from Seoul.

"It's a lot like Bellingham is to Seattle," Kim said.

Kim said he swam with a club team in Korea while growing up, until he broke both of his arms "doing something dumb" and was shut down in the sport for two years until he started swimming with the Lions as a freshman.

"It's kind of ironic that the breaststroke is now my best because I wasn't very good in Korea," Kim said. "But right now, it's one of my best. It's a lot of fun."

Kim arrived in the United States as an eighth grader as part of an international studies program. His entire family still lives in Korea, and Kim said he returns home during the summer and talks to his parents by phone about once a month.

"They call me, because I think they miss me," Kim joked. "They want to know how I'm doing in school and swimming and everything else."

Kim said he's lived with Clyde and Gladys Libolt the past two to three years, and Kim said he's enjoyed the past four-plus years living in the U.S. so much that he's applied to go to school next year at the University of Washington.

"It was really hard at first," Kim said. "When I first got here in eighth grade, I hardly spoke any English. I couldn't say much, and I didn't understand anything. That was hard. Language is really hard."

Even when he joined the swim team a year later in high school, Gibb said there were some difficulties communicating with his freshman swimmer.

"I would just do what Gibb would ask me, and I wouldn't ask any questions," Kim said. "I really didn't feel comfortable asking questions at that time. I just did what he wanted. Coach Gibb is an incredible coach. He knows what to do and how to get his swimmers to improve. Coach Gibb is more than just a coach for me - he's a mentor and a teacher. I still follow what he tells me to do, but now I can ask questions."

As a senior, Kim is fluent enough to not only ask questions and conduct an interview in English, but to serve as a team co-captain for the Lions.

"Inspirationally, he does a really good job of keeping the guys working," Gibb said. "The younger guys look up to him. We've had a good run here the past couple of years, and Moses has been a big part of that."

But before he graduates from the program, Kim has one more thing he'd like to accomplish as a Lion.

Kim has been to the state meet in Federal Way three times before, helping the Lions place fourth in both the 200 medley and 200 freestyle relays last year.

But he has yet to yet to qualify for an individual event final, missing the finals in the 200 IM by just one place and the 100 breaststroke finals by five spots last year.

That's something he would like to change later this month in his fourth trip to state.

"It would be great to make the finals and go for the win," Kim said. "Every event, I want to win the race. That's the same for state and district. I want to wrap up with a good finish and finish strong."

Reach David Rasbach at david.rasbach@bellinghamherald.com or 360-715-2271.