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SI: You set two world records at the
world championships in Gwangju,
South Korea. What has life been like
since?
RS: It hasn’t quite sunk in yet. We
essentially went straight from Korea
to nationals [at Stanford]. And
now that I’m finally going home [to
Lakeville, Minn.], I’ll start to think
back about everything that happened.
SI: I’m sure you’ve had tons of people
reaching out to you. Has there been
anyone that had you particularly
starstruck?
RS: Definitely Missy [Franklin]. It
was really cool and exciting. I always
looked up to her, especially because
we swam the same strokes.
SI: Does breaking her last remaining
world record, in the 200 back, come
with any added emotions for you?
RS: I’ve known her record—2:04.06—
for years. I remember when I was
[swimming] 2:14 and just being like,
How is it even possible how fast she
went? So to think that I was the one
who did it is absolutely crazy to me.
SI:You didn’t race during the first
week of worlds. How did you stay in
the zone?
RS: Before the meet I was like, Oh my
gosh, I still have so much more time
until I swim, I’m going to get so antsy.
But I actually think waiting helped
me. Each night that I watched Team
USA perform, I got more and more
excited, seeing all the other swimmers
get in their routine and how things
work. So by the time my race came
around, I was really comfortable.
SI:Despite not racing the 100
individually, you swam on the world-
record 4 × 100 IM relay. Were you
nervous to be put in that position?QUITE A
SPLASH
REGAN SMITH
THE 17-YEAR-OLD SENSATION
STILL ISN’T SURE SHE BROKE A
SEVEN-YEAR-OLD WORLD RECORD
RS: I was extremely nervous being
in front of three Olympians, but I
definitely think that I channeled the
nerves in a good way. I did a good job
of not letting it crack me under the
pressure.
SI:You are committed to Stanford for
the fall after the Olympics. But are
you also considering turning pro?
RS: Definitely not right now.
Stanford’s been my dream for forever.
In a year? I’m not sure.
SI:How hard is it to grasp what you’ve
done the past two weeks?
RS: I don’t know if the world record
will ever sink in. I hope it does,
because having that in the back of
my mind is really motivating. But I
honestly wonder if I just forget that I
was even capable of doing that. I hope
that makes sense. It’s just very weird
to think about. ±