World Championships

Hi everyone.

I thought I should fill you all in on my background.
I grew up in Northern California, in a small town called Roseville.
It is much bigger now....so much so that they had to create a new town, so technically I am from Granite Bay.
I started swimming when I was 4 years old...because my brother did it.
I tried to do everything he did....but was pretty much only successful at swimming.
I started on a summer rec team and then moved to a year round team when i was 8. I always loved the sport. I loved the friends I made. I loved challenging myself. I loved racing.
I probably first realized I had talent when I was about 12 years old. That is when I first qualified for Senior Nationals. That is also when I was really tested. I was suddenly up against the Big Time girls....and after years of getting first place, I was coming in close to last.
When I was 14 years old, I was at a serious crossroads. I was a pain in the butt. Both in the water and out. I was not a joy to be around and I was swimming very poorly. My parents tried to say the right thing but nothing helped. And then, something changed in me. When I was 15, I guess I grew up. I went to the '88 Olympic Trials and surprised myself. My coach had told me to approach my races with the mindset that it is just for experience. That took the pressure off.....and I swam unbelievably.
I walked away with best times in all my events....by several seconds and after leading going into the last lap of my 200 IM, I touched the wall 3rd. I missed making the Olympic team by .27 of a second. The funny thing is that I wasn't sad, I was stoked that I competed, bettered my time and was tough to the end.
I was a new person after the experience. I had a new focus. I knew what I wanted and was going to stop at nothing to achieve it. I went on to Stanford University where I was training with INCREDIBLE women everyday. My goals were off the charts....and it was so much fun.
Stanford women's swimming went on to win the '92 NCAA championship....the greatest moment ever!!! I won every event I entered during my 2 years at the NCAA Champs. I set American records and had a blast because of my incredible teammates.
My coaches were outstanding. At home my coach was Mike Hastings. He had coached several Olympians before me....John Naber was one.
My coach in college was Richard Quick. He is an awesome motivator. The combo of the two coaches was pretty much perfect. I was a very lucky gal.

My junior year in college, I decided to give up my elegibility so that I could make some money from my Olympic experience. It was such a difficult decision. Many times after I made the announcement, I wanted to change my mind....but in my gut, I knew my decision was correct.
I went on to qualify for 4 individual events and a relay for the '92 Barcelona Games. The Olympic Trials were more tiring, both emotionally and physically than all of my competitions added together. I will do a seperate blog just about the Olympic Trials.....they are nuts.

Anyway, in Barcelona I won a bronze in the 400 IM, a silver in the 200 IM, a gold in the 4X100 medley relay and a gold in the 200 fly. It was an awesome week to say the least. I wish I could have been two people so that I could have experienced even more during my 3 weeks in Spain...there was so much to see and do.

After the Olympics, I took a quarter off from Stanford to travel and work with some of my sponsors. My brother traveled with me as an intern for my agent. He was such a good friend. It was so nice having family there with me to keep me grounded and to keep me laughing.

October of '92, I went back to classes and swimming. Stanford is such a wonderful school with a very humbling atmosphere. Everyone is outstanding at something....it was an easy transition.

One year later however, I began to question why I was swimming....and that is when I knew I needed to say goodbye to the sport I had know everyday for my entire life.

I don't want to bore you with my whole story but i wanted you to get a sense of what I had accomplished in my sport and where some twist and turns had taken place. It is a tough sport because the hours required for training are intense.

I now have such admiration for people like Natalie Coughlin, Michael Phelps and even Jenny Thompson before them because they have stuck with it for so long. You can't slack off at all as a swimmer. A few weeks off feels like a year away from the water. But like I have told many people before who have asked me how I could get up at 4:30am to get into a cold swimming pool....I had the incredible opportunity to challenge myself and accomplish something before most people even thought about getting out of bed. That feeling is unbelievable and I was addicted to it.

once a swimmer, always a swimmer.
summer