Olympian Ryan Lochte Inspires
Local Swimmers
Haley Blanchette
Editor-in-Chief
“The coolest thing was pushing off the wall at the same time
as him… accelerating through the water while also being inches
away, close enough to stick a finger out and touch him underwater,” said
sophomore swimmer Paula Bentley regarding swimming with Olympian Ryan
Lochte. He trained at Canandaigua Academy on February 25 and 26.
Lochte took home gold in the 2008 Beijing Olympics for the 4 x 200
meter freestyle relay alongside champion Michael Phelps. He also took
gold for the individual 200 meter backstroke in addition to two bronze
medals for the 200 and 400 meter individual medley events.
Lochte was born in Canandaigua but moved to Florida before attending
high school. While visiting his grandmother in his original hometown
of Bristol, Lochte trained with the Canandaigua Aquatics swim team.
The evenings with the Olympian gave Canandaigua’s swimmers inspiration
and reinforced the idea in senior and swimmer Lindsey Lord “that
nothing is impossible if we just set our minds to it.”
 Senior
swimmer Heather Savage realized, “[Lochte] is just a normal
guy who goes to practice and works hard just like we do, but for
him it happens on a different level.” She is “very proud
to have him as a role model, not only for [herself] but for [her] teammates
as well.”
Eleven-year-old Danielle Pietropaolo sat in the stands with her friends
as their idol swam along side the older members of their aquatics
team. She likes that, “his strokes are strong and he tries really
hard.” Danielle’s friend, Megan Walters, an eleven-year-old
swimmer, says, “It’s really interesting that he came to
our pool. There were a lot of others he could have gone to and he chose
ours.”
Jody Holland has two daughters, Ashley and Erica Holland, who swim
on the aquatics team. She thought swimming with the Olympian was, “an
awesome opportunity for them to be able to compare their abilities to
an Olympic Swimmer’s.”
Lochte took the time to sign autographs and take pictures with the
team. “Seeing him and talking to him up close was very cool,” said
Bentley. “You realize how modest and real he is.”
“It was an honor and a great deal of fun.”
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