Worlds

Hey Everyone,

It’s been a busy few weeks to say the least. Right after our amazing experience at the Pan Am Games, we were immediately brought back down to earth with a training camp in Bratislava, Slovakia. This camp had to be one of the hardest things I’ve done in my synchro career; physically, mentally and emotionally. It was like Vegas Week on ‘So You Think You Can Dance’….. And if you have never seen that show, it was hell.

Meng pushed us to the edge and by the end of day one we all knew that this was going to be the hardest 5 days of our summer. Honestly, I expected it to be crazy, but it was worse than I imagined. It’s hard to be positive about it because at that point I just wanted to wipe it from my memory (and also why I never posted anything about it), but it paid off.

Trusting the coach is the key to days like this. I’m pretty sure by day 3, I thought she was trying to kill us. But she was right. This training camp changed my World Championships in a way I could never have thought possible. I am generally a very nervous, stressed competitor. I always feel like I will forget a move or make a mistake, which is not a thought you want 10 seconds before you walk onto the deck, but this competition has been the most fun I’ve had in a long time.

There came a point in my career that I started to dislike competing because the nerves would take over and I wouldn’t enjoy the moment as much. This year has changed that! 1st of all, competing at Pan Am in front of a home crowd was so gratifying. The swims itself were very hard, physically, but I loved every second I had in the water. It was an experience that I can’t even fully describe on paper. I loved every minute of it, even the pain I was feeling made this dream-like event so real.

Worlds, on the other hand, has been by far one of the easiest competitions I’ve had. The swims have felt amazing and I am having so much more fun than ever before…. Probably due to the fact that I’m not thinking about how much pain I’ll be in; thanks to hell week in Bratislava. We are so ready!! I don’t think this team has ever felt this together and this determined to prove how great we truly are!!

It has been inspiring to be a part of such an incredible journey. Whether the marks are high or low, we will fight till the bitter end. We have come so far these last few years. This is my family; my home. I am so thankful to have been given the chance to swim with this team and to share a full array of emotions with these girls. We are warriors ready to fight a battle. We can not be any more prepared for these last few swims than we are right now and I believe that we can truly be proud of what we have achieved here.