Faces off the field provides a deeper look into the thoughts and lives of high school student-athletes in Austin. Today we feature Daniel Hosek, a junior tennis player from Hutto who aspires to one day become an auto mechanic at Toyota.
All about Daniel: lasting memories of a summer in Italy
If you could be a superhero, who would you be?
I would be Spider-Man because he helps his neighborhood and the world.
What is the best thing you did this summer?
The best thing I did this summer was take a trip to Italy with my family. It was my first trip outside the United States and also my first flight. We went to Florence and Rome with a detour to Pisa, Modena and Tivoli. It was so cool to see the ruins of Rome and know that they were built before Jesus was born. My family is Catholic and when we visited all the churches and the Vatican it was really special.
Aside from tennis, what do you like most about your school?
Outside of tennis, I enjoy my auto mechanics course because I enjoy doing hands-on work and I enjoy tinkering with things. I like welding and also woodworking. I carved a kitchen spoon for my sister for her birthday.
What is your favorite TV show?
I think my favorite TV show is “The Office” because it’s funny and I like comedy shows. The way the characters can be so grating makes me laugh.
What do you plan to do after you graduate?
My plan is to go to Toyota’s auto mechanic school and then work at a dealership. I like working with my hands and not sitting behind a desk. I look forward to working on gasoline and electric vehicles.
Serving aces and gaining lifelong fans through tennis
How did you get hooked on tennis?
I tried it in college, but didn’t get much court time because of COVID. When I got to high school, I knew I didn’t want to do physical education, so let me try tennis. I like this game because I can be outside and hang out with friends.
What is your favorite part of the game?
My favorite thing about tennis is training with my friends, playing practice matches, and just having fun and having fun on the court.
How do you deal with adversity when you have a bad match?
I’m just trying to focus on the next point. Even if I won or lost the last point or set, it’s already done and I need to focus on the point now and not on the mistakes I made in the past.
Do you have any rituals on match days?
I don’t really have any rituals on match days. I’m just trying to keep a tennis-focused mindset.
Dream dinner: an impressive guest list
If you could have dinner with four people in world history, who would they be?
I had dinner with Jesus Christ, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Vincent van Gogh.
Why Jesus?
I chose Jesus because I am Catholic and very committed to my faith. I am a senior altar server and actively participate in youth ministry. I think it would be really cool to have dinner with him because he would feel like a friend I haven’t seen in years, even though we followed each other in social media and through text messages. I think we would get along well and I would have a lot of questions for him. Do you think people today are worse or better than those you dealt with when you were with your disciples?
Our other interviews with tennis players
by Westwood Jenya Tellabiti and that of Westlake Luc Rieebeek
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Faces off the court: Hutto tennis player Daniel Hosek
