Olympic Gold Medalist, David Tarwater, Visits BSAC Blue Wave

Members of the BSAC Blue Wave swim team had a special guest speaker on December 24th, 2018. Olympic gold medalist, Davis Tarwater, spoke about his lifelong journey to the London 2012 games, inspiring young swimmers to work hard and chase dreams.

His career started in high school when he set three state swimming records in his hometown, Knoxville Tennessee. Davis Tarwater went on to become a three time NCAA national champion and thirteen-time All-American during his time at the University of Michigan, where he won a Big Ten Medal of Honor in his senior season.

Davis didn’t stop there, his impressive athletic career includes winning a gold medal in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay at the US World Championships in 2009, three individual and five relay national titles, and three national American records. Despite his massive success, he still didn’t make the Olympic team in 2004, 2008, or 2012. Davis finally got his shot when Michigan training partner, Michael Phelps, dropped the 200-meter freestyle from his schedule, allowing Davis Tarwater to join the team and ultimately win a gold medal in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay.

His inspirational journey shows the importance of perseverance and focus in athletics. During his visit at BSAC, Davis emphasized hard work, setting goals, and taking steps to make those goals a reality. But the most important takeaway of all? To have fun and enjoy spending time with teammates. Although swimming is mostly regarded as an individual sport, having the support of teammates makes all the difference.

Davis Tarwater is married to Brittany Tarwater, daughter of BSAC Blue Wave swim coach Rich Rogers. Brittany is an award winning multimedia Journalist and anchor for the WVLT Knoxville News, who also had All-American swimming honors at the NCAA championships.

Thanks for stopping by, Davis!

 

 

 

Written By: Carli Walko – BSAC Director of Marketing