USA Swimming has been in San Antonio this week for the 2024 TYR Pro Swim Series Finale, where Olympians and Olympic hopefuls competed to tune up their skills and showcase the sport throughout the country. During the stop in town, Olympian and five-time world champion Nic Fink spoke with a group of young swimmers who are part of the Diversity Equity and Inclusion program.
Fink shared some lessons he learned throughout his journey to becoming a world-class swimmer, but the opportunity to speak with a group like this is the prize in itself.
“It’s kinda cool to remind yourself that we all come from different lifestyles, different swimming backgrounds, even different athletic backgrounds, and when you go to things like this, you get to meet all sorts of people,” Fink said. “And you realize that any one of them could end up being the next big thing in swimming, and maybe just hammering in some of the things that I’ve learned over my career is something that I like passing to the next generation.”
After the talk, the group went to the outside competition pool, where they got the opportunity to see more Olympians compete. Two gold medalists went head-to-head when Katie Ladecky and Simone Manuel faced off in the 200-meter freestyle final.
The event overall was inspiring for one local swimmer, 12-year-old Baylie Gonzalez, who shared the impact of getting to meet Olympians in her hometown.
“It makes me wanna push harder, go to more meets, try my best, and hopefully get to a level where he is or try to be as good as (Nic Fink),” said Gonzalez. “I just wanna go to the Olympics or maybe even just swim for fun.”
This was the last major competition before the Olympic trials, and about 90% of the swimmers who competed in town this week will look to make Team USA before the Olympics in Paris this summer.