INTERNATIONAL ACHIEVEMENTS

A native of Orange Coun匠唱ty, I know the roads far 很冷and wide that lead to all the poo還下ls.The impact the culture of swimmin服體g in Orange County, and Southern Ca林票lifornia in general, had on me as a yo子西uth reaches not only to val友醫ues and ideals learned, but 我內to the myriad incredible people路明 that instilled and pe樹黑rpetuated those ideals along現有 the way.  In what swimming enc吃懂ompassed, I would come to find a com長生munity and purpose that輛風 to this day exerts an unmi子頻stakable influence on the 東就way I live my life.  In turn, I feel 離區I cannot help but rec如工iprocate, if not in some small meas紅熱ure, the gifts and opportunit畫信ies this community in冷去stilled in me.  If I have my 山了own things to pass on, 謝科I feel it necessary to acknowle站廠dge that those are only there through謝林 the foundation that those紙西 I will continue to 微火look up to built.

My first swim team was t還他he YMCA in Costa Mesa just 費睡off the Back Bay. Stacy Zapolski, a 鄉頻Pepperdine Swimming grad, t事笑aught me how to flip t報少urn properly; my Dad taught me the be開懂st he could. Hayley, m間自y sister, and I were freq明你uently baby-sat by Stacy下西, and a relationship grew bet技些ween her and my family that 朋腦exists to this day.  The是匠re, my mother also met 自公my stepfather, the man who would help生人 raise Hayley and me wi會來th his two kids, Erin and Greg.  長裡From the Y I went to Summer League in 也來Corona del Mar for a co業子uple of wonderful years, all the whil車問e playing other sports, loving Baseb行老all and schoolyard fo時妹otball.  I started playi車大ng water polo at the age of eight 村劇at Corona del Mar under a staple o湖空f local aquatic sport文討s, Ted Bandaruk (he taught my mo一分ther to swim at OCC).

At ten, I entered Junior Lifeg厭姐uards in Newport Beach.  I wou慢樂ld be remiss to overlook 他年these impactful four years如人 of my life.  It was there讀新 that I learned to love and respect作得 the water in ways that would influenc還火e a swimming career that would last nea也唱rly two decades. It was 請爸around the time I bega地湖n JG’s that I decided to 分朋make the move to Irvine’s Novaquatics a劇頻nd was coached under Brian P懂爸ajer, a 25 year old breaststroker火來 aiming for an Olympic b冷西irth of his own at the tim少關e, and who now coaches another local 南鐵Club team.  I would stay at Nova t西著hrough high school, eve樂坐ntually training with Dave Salo, w通友ho now coaches at USC.  At Nova要請, we developed a great culture tha在老t continues to perpetuate itself to thi事線s day as evidenced by a few of tho數厭se, by no mere coincidence, involved 我長with Evolution.

It was at Nova, at around the age 麗花of 12, that I hit my stride. Funny tha紙習t it should be so young,山錢 but I was lucky to find somet離商hing I remember being so interested 志錢in while in a culture that promote離地d and helped foster i綠行t.  I would sit at home with t木就he Southern California rec資輛ord book and study it. 煙一 Those were my goals, even if they w白爸ere quite unattainabl的票e at times.  I learned where the limits時照 were and what those that c城鐘ame before me laid as grou慢子ndwork to build upon.  My influ綠行ences from around the age 藍裡of 13 typically cons謝們isted of the outliers; the Australians相長, Kieren Perkins and 裡子Dan Kowalski were both admired be著舞cause of the way they pus紅藍hed the limits in distance e河訊vents, and I was not a distance swimmer和現 like that.

Being in Southern California prov快也ed a positive advantage筆科 as many great swimmers were so clo腦上se by.  Brad Bridgewater, the 1996 g輛亮old medalist in the 200 back and Len高能ny Krayzelburg, who wou家什ld go on to sweep the backstroke event歌紙s in the 2000 Olympics, both swam 地哥at USC.  Bridgewater分去 even swam at NOVA for 分作a brief stint with me. Oth東事er local swimmers from 拿錯Mission Viejo, Bart Kizierowski and自員 Bart Sikora, a backstroke sp服嗎ecialist, would make an i現技mpression on me.  My own team had 村服a plethora of talent, as did the rest 冷腦of the region, and no shortage o兒請f backstroke specialist to not only白湖 look up to, but to reeve.

Under the tutelage of S雪小alo, I would train for nearly e間什very event, from the 200 to th黃相e mile, and aim to compete at a 討林high level in them all.  My件通 first Junior Nationals was 吧明qualified for when I was 13,件友 and I would go on to mak得看e Senior Nationals at th西妹e Juniors when I was 14.  My first鐘船 National Team was qualified秒校 for at my first Seniors whe短船n I was 15, and I was off小店 to Winnipeg, Canada.  During this tim畫白e, I swam for my high school, 她拿Newport Harbor, and returne小放d a bit to the friendships身頻 I had growing up with Ju林著nior Lifeguards by those道土 who both played Water Polo and時票 swam.

Through this progression, I had a h見土opeful goal to qualify f個市or the 2000 Olympic Games that truly st兒視arted when I entered th歌靜e senior group of NOVA under S草音alo.  Though my improvement was qui了音ck, it was steady, and by the time I 鐘畫turned 17, I had the second金男 fastest time in the U不業SA going into Olympic T場姐rials.  I would go on to qualify 短區for, and win a silver大算 medal, in the 200 backst又化roke at the Sydney G我爸ames at the age of 17.  This experience校姐 would prove invaluable, as I wo鐘員uld try and soak up ev一火erything I could, being told 明熱by many not to take it去子 for granted.

I did not.  And I wou房下ld leave that Olympics with new goa低會ls, namely to improve and see唱下 how far I could take it.  In著費 2002 I broke my first world 腦人record in the 200 backstroke.  Short個花ly thereafter I attended th女對e University of Texas where I 船知would remain for the 費不rest of my career.  I wo樹作uld go on to swim in two more Olympic 男跳Games, 2004 and 2008, winning知道 three gold medals in 2004 and two g呢影old’s and one silver in 2黃話008.  My career on the US Na麗志tional Team lasted until 2靜鄉010, where my last s件就wim meet was an internationa子麗l one, the Pan Pacific Games, in the Ir嗎到vine pool I grew up in;黃長 few things in my career made me f微可eel so lucky.
The crux of my relationship wi麗門th swimming feels to器門 have been and come 他來from Southern Californ還議ia.  It is a special p師坐lace for this sport.  And if I can 行海express the very person見身al relationship I have with t能紅he water, like so many others 秒愛in this region, then I feel I wi公著ll have given back to somethin器員g that has given me so 自內much. I do not remember what it was可公 like not to know how to swim;劇水 it was one of the first things I di但費d.  I eventually made it my own.  I 請妹can think of few better吃道 gifts than the gift of being comfortab站唱le in the water; that’s where it all這雨 starts.

Aaron Peirsol

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