A breaststroker from Auckland, James Slessor arrived at Youngstown State University in the autumn of 2022 and won two events in his first collegiate meet. Four years later, he leaves as a school record holder, Horizon League finalist, Academic All-District selection, team captain, and one of the most well-rounded student-athletes the programme has produced.
James Slessor was eight years old when he started setting long-term goals for his swimming career. At the time, they felt more like dreams than realistic outcomes. So when he won both the 100 and 200 breaststroke in his first-ever Division I competition at Youngstown State, even he struggled to believe it.
“Little 8-year-old James back in New Zealand setting long-term goals never thought he’d be winning Division I meets in his first competition. I’m really stoked for my college journey to start off in such a way,” he remarked.
Four years later, that “journey” turned into something far bigger than just fast swimming times.
School records. A perfect GPA stretch across multiple semesters. Eleven individual wins in one season. Horizon League podium finishes. Most Valuable Swimmer. Academic honours. An internationally recognised business certification. A competitive fellowship working directly with Ohio businesses. Captain of the YSU Men’s Swim Team.
It all started with a signing announcement. What it became was one of the more complete student-athlete careers Youngstown State has seen in recent years.
James didn’t grow up planning to swim in America from day one. Like a lot of New Zealand athletes, the pathway became real once he saw people around him actually do it.
Two swimmers from his club in Auckland, Waitakere Swimming Club, had already gone through the U.S. scholarship process themselves. Hearing directly from people he trusted, who had lived it firsthand, made the whole thing feel possible rather than just something you saw online.
They told him it was one of the best decisions they’d ever made.
“This matters more than people realise,” he said. For many New Zealand families, the American college system still feels unfamiliar, especially outside of sports like rowing or basketball, where the pathway is talked about more openly. Having older athletes who can explain the process honestly makes a massive difference for younger swimmers trying to figure out whether it’s worth pursuing.
For James, that firsthand perspective gave him the confidence to seriously chase the opportunity.
James arrived at Youngstown State University in 2022 as a breaststroke and IM swimmer from Auckland, originally majoring in Business Management before later transitioning into Supply Chain Management.
What made the situation interesting was the timing. YSU had only recently added men’s swimming back in 2019, meaning the programme was still relatively new and building its culture, standards, and identity.
That creates a different environment compared to joining a long-established programme. In newer programmes, athletes have a genuine opportunity to leave a lasting mark… not just contribute to history, but to help build it.
James did exactly that from the beginning.
In his very first collegiate meet, he won two individual events. By his junior year, he held school records in the 50, 100, and 200-yard breaststroke.
Across four seasons, James steadily developed from a freshman winning early dual meets into one of the Horizon League’s most consistent and reliable breaststroke swimmers.
During the 2024–25 season, he won 11 individual events across 10 meets, finished third in the 100 breaststroke at the Horizon League Championships in 54.05, and helped YSU send athletes to the US Open Championships for the first time in programme history.
Academically, he was also named Academic All-District that same season, continuing a trend that would define most of his college career: strong performances in the pool alongside equally strong performances in the classroom.
In his senior season, he finished runner-up in the 100 breaststroke at the Horizon League Championships, contributed to a third-place 200 medley relay, and posted times in the 50 and 100 breaststroke that ranked inside the NCAA top 100 for the season.
More importantly, though, the progression itself tells the story.
Nothing about his career was overnight. Every season built on the last one. Slightly faster times. Better conference placings. Bigger leadership responsibilities. More consistency.
That’s usually what long-term development in college sport actually looks like when an athlete buys fully into the process.
The swimming achievements are impressive. The academic and professional side might be even more impressive.
James maintained an elite academic record throughout college, earning repeated Horizon League Academic Honor Roll recognition while balancing Division I athletics and a demanding business degree.
He eventually specialised in Supply Chain Management while adding minors in International Business and Professional Selling, creating an academic profile that went well beyond simply maintaining eligibility.
He also earned the NASBITE Certified Global Business Professional (CGBP) qualification - an international trade certification that is uncommon even among business graduates, let alone student-athletes balancing full NCAA schedules.
In 2025, he was selected as a John D. Beeghly Fellow at Youngstown State University, one of a small group of students chosen to work directly with businesses through the Ohio Small Business Development Center and Export Assistance Network.
The role involved real-world consulting-style work including market research, export analysis, business strategy support, and forecasting projects for companies across Ohio.
That kind of experience matters because it bridges the gap between university and professional life. It’s applied work with real consequences, real clients, and real expectations.
Alongside all of that, James also served as captain of the YSU Men’s Swim Team during his junior and senior seasons balancing leadership responsibilities within a roster made up of athletes from different states, backgrounds, and countries while also navigating life as an international student himself.
James originally came to the United States because older swimmers he trusted told him the experience changed their lives for the better.
Now, four years later, he’s become that example for the next generation of New Zealand athletes considering the same pathway.
His story is about much more than swimming times.
It’s about what can happen when the right athletic environment is paired with the right academic opportunities and the right personal mindset. The medals and records matter, but the bigger long-term value comes from everything surrounding them - the leadership experience, the professional development, the education, the international perspective, and the network built along the way.
Those are the things that shape the twenty years after sport finishes.
The college pathway created the opportunity. What James did with it after arriving in Ohio was entirely up to him.
If you are a student-athlete or parent trying to better understand the U.S. college pathway, start with a conversation. Platform Sports can help athletes and families understand timelines, scholarship opportunities, and what the right fit might actually look like.”
If you are a student-athlete or parent trying to understand the U.S. college pathway, start with a conversation. Platform Sports can help you understand your options, your timeline, and what the right fit could look like.
