Each Thursday, varsityblues.ca will highlight a U of T student-athlete and their academic pursuits. Each of these students achieved first class honours with an AGPA of at least 3.50 in the previous academic year. These are our Student-Athlete Stories, presented by Egg Farmers of Ontario.
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Computer science seems to run in the family for Varsity Blues cross country and track and field athlete Adam Pralat. The third-year runner has followed in the footsteps of a mathematician father and an older brother, also in the U of T computer science program.
"He [Adam's older brother] likes to tease me for 'copying him', but honestly both him and my dad have been huge inspirations to me," admits Pralat. "And my mom works at U of T, so growing up I got to visit her on campus and was able to attend U of T summer camps – including coding camp."
A second home for the Toronto native, Pralat has found a way to utilize his familiarity with the campus to benefit a busy schedule with his academic rigors and varsity athletic training. Even finding a way to mesh the two together, training for problem-solving, and even utilizing a commute for training.
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(Pralat running at the 2023 OUA cross country championships in Waterloo | Photo by Tiffany Luke)
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"While it can sometimes be challenging to balance varsity sport alongside a competitive academic program, I cannot imagine doing my university experience any other way. I find running not only keeps me physically active, but also contributes to my mental well-being. Whenever I get stuck on a math problem or with debugging code, getting out for a run helps me mentally reset or even think of a solution during my run. I also live close enough to campus where instead of taking the TTC, most days I will run down to campus before my classes and then back home after. Not only is it actually faster than the TTC, but since I need to get my training in anyways, it completely eliminates my commute."
A clear problem-solver and dedicated to his craft, this level of commitment has paid dividends for Pralat in both the classroom and on the running trails. Facing tough coding challenges, he has found the reward in digging deep into development, while also digging deep for his teammates in crucial races.
"One of my favourite academic memories while at U of T so far would have to be making Tetris in Assembly, a low-level programming language," detailed Pralat. "I got to work alongside a friend of mine to recreate the game, where we implemented features such as a full set of tetrominoes, gravity, and even the Tetris theme music. Being able to demo and play the game at the end of the semester was extremely rewarding."
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(Pralat studying on campus | Photo by Neil Patel)
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"My favourite Varsity Blues memory has been the 2023 OUA cross country championships in Waterloo," added Pralat. "I had come down with a pretty bad cold a couple days before the meet and really struggled during the race, even debating with myself about dropping out. I finished the race feeling pretty disappointed, but was soon surrounded by excited teammates. Thanks to some amazing performances on the team, we had managed to place third and secure a team bronze medal, our first medal since 2006. With only five points separating third and fourth place, dropping out would have cost us a medal, so despite the initial disappointment in my own personal result, I am proud of myself for fighting to the end and helping our team."
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(Pralat, far right, and the Blues celebrating their bronze-medal finish at the 2023 OUA cross country championships | Photo by Courtney Caird)
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Continuing to reflect on the choices made, the two-time U SPORTS academic all-Canadian acknowledges an understanding of what drove him to U of T. Even with the family connections, a desire to go beyond those familiar walls was present, but reflection provides reassurance of the choices he has made.
"Academically, U of T was a lot stronger than any other schools I was looking at, and the track team had lots of success in recent years, so choosing Toronto was a pretty obvious choice for me; especially after hearing about my brothers great experience. Reflecting a couple years later, despite part of me wanting to move out and leave Toronto, I sure am glad that I stayed."
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