By Gavin Priest and Jack Footer, Cronkite PR Lab
Experiencing a multitude of international cultures shaped Beata Kaszuba-
Baker’s time at Arizona State and, ultimately, her journey into the Sun Devil
Hall of Fame.
Kaszuba-Baker, a former swimmer at ASU, is one of five former Sun Devil
student-athletes being honored this year.
Growing up in Poland, Kaszuba-Baker went to a school that offered
swimming as an activity. Her parents specifically enrolled her in this school
so she could feel more comfortable in the water when they went on
vacation.
It took a while for her to overcome her fear and develop a love for the
water. Over time, though, she made many friends and learned an intrinsic
set of values through the sport. The same is true of her time at ASU.
Thinking back on her initial fear of the water, Kazuba-Baker never could've
imagined that she would someday suit up for the Sun Devils. However, she
was interested in the university because the recruitment felt so personal.
“The coach who was recruiting me, Tim Hill, was very consistent with
phone calls and information. He took the time to make calls personally to
Poland, and back then, with the time difference, with no cell phones, that
really stood out,” Kazuba-Baker said.
She felt coming to a university in the United States was intimidating. But
she felt at ease knowing there were so many kind people on the coaching
staff and that many of her teammates were coming from countries outside
the United States.
At the time, aside from her home country of Poland, student-athletes on the
ASU swim team hailed from Brazil, Mexico, France and even Sweden.
“I love the fact that there were many international swimmers,” Kazuba-
Maker said. “Of course, there were Americans, and there were other
swimmers from other countries. I loved that international atmosphere - the
differences, the similarities, the different languages, the different accents.
“Now, I'm working for Little League International, and I have to deal with
countries in Europe and Africa. So, I always lean on my experience at ASU,
that international experience. We came from different countries, different
places, but we did the same thing. We had so much in common, and that
was really the biggest thing.”
Kaszuba-Baker broke records during her time as a Sun Devil. She became
the first female collegiate swimmer to break the one-minute barrier in the
100-yard backstroke. While she is proud of the record, she sees it more as
a learning experience, saying it helped her grow more courageous and set
higher goals without worrying about the risks.
She is humbled to be one of the 2026 Sun Devil Hall of Fame inductees.
The achievement has brought back years' worth of incredible memories.
“It's almost like I feel young again,” Kaszuba-Baker said. “It's just so
wonderful to know that I had some impact somewhere, and that someone
somewhere still remembers me. In a way, I realized how much ASU
invested in me, allowing me to come to Arizona State and offering me a
scholarship. So, the fact that this is happening now, it's kind of like maybe I
repaid them a little bit.”
Aside from her work with Little League International, Kaszuba-Baker stays
active by swimming multiple times a week and doing a variety of crafts,
such as sewing and painting. She's even gone to Greece in recent years to
paint Byzantine iconography.
Kaszuba-Baker added that in life you might not always succeed, but you
have to keep going because there's always value in what you're doing. She
believes something great may be coming around the corner.
“Don't stop halfway, even if it's very, very hard,” Kaszuba-Baker said. “I
think that's the biggest thing, because I know how swimmers can feel. The
training is hard and intense, and there are many days that you just want to
quit, almost. When you start something, just continue and finish it.”