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U.S. OLYMPIC SWIM TRIALS

June 25, 2016

Matt Grevers

Omaha, Nebraska

THE MODERATOR: Up next we have Matt Grevers, a two-time Olympian, multiple gold medalist and we'll get things started. Matt, obviously you've enjoyed success here in Omaha the past two go-rounds. Just walk us through, kind of, your thought process, approaching the meet this week.

MATT GREVERS: As Rowdy was saying earlier, we have a shot at this every four years, so there is a little anxiety, a little build up to this meet, and as soon as I stepped into the pool it kind of vanished and excitement came just seeing this familiar set-up and having fond memories of, I guess the last two Trials, kind of got me excited, and that's where I'm at right now, just excited.

Q. Matt, congratulations, you are about to be a father. With Annie being pregnant, what's your thoughts on the Zika virus. I know Annie was going to go to Rio and now, because of all that -- I don't want that to shave whatever great things are happening with you, but what kind of discussions did you guys go through on that?
MATT GREVERS: Very short discussion, as soon as we found out Annie was pregnant, we knew instantly she was not going to go to Rio, if I did make the team. It's just a risk not worth taking and even myself, as soon as I -- if I make the team I would come back and quarantine myself and go through all the processes that you need to go through to make sure that you're clean.

So we're just educating ourselves now, I'm educating myself. I'm going to bring a lot of mosquito repellent if I go.

Q. Matt, you heard Rowdy talk about the 100 Backstroke and how competitive of an event that is. You've seen Murphy and Plummer going 52s this year and you've been right there at the 53 lows. What's your outlook on that event from what you've seen and what you're expecting here in the next couple of days?
MATT GREVERS: Plummer has been around. I've been racing him since he was 10 years old. I think Murphy was born when we were 10 years old, but he's been phenomenal for a while. Those guys -- I expect all three of us to be really fast, and I think it might be one of the fastest, relative to being close to the world record, one of the fastest men's events at the meet.

And I think we're all excited, and we're all hungry for those spots and, yeah, I think you can expect some pretty cool things.

Q. (No microphone.)
MATT GREVERS: I don't want to say you can expect a world record, but I think it's possible for all three of us to be right there. Who knows -- Murphy is a young guy, and he's -- those young people drop a lot of time! Not saying the old people can't, but who knows what can come from him, and, I mean, David Plummer is hungry for it. He's gotten -- he's just missed the team a few times, and he really wants it, so -- and I want to hold my title, so all of us are really hungry for the event, and I think, yeah, it will be good.

Q. I guess you just touched on it there a little, but how has your perspective been different this quad and I guess coming in the last couple weeks and being here now than in '08 and '12?
MATT GREVERS: '08 I still considered myself an underdog, and that was a very pure experience, as in I wanted to make the team but I didn't have expectations to. So it was just a goal, but kind of a lofty goal.

2012 I thought I was supposed to make the team and win, and now it's very similar to 2012. I want to make the team really bad, and I would say my preparation and thought process has been very similar to 2012. My expectations are very similar. Just because I've accomplished goals in the past doesn't mean I don't want to accomplish new ones now.

I'm not just satisfied with my past performances, I'm just as hungry as ever. I would like to say the anxiety levels are lower, but they're not. There are similar pressures, always. I guess Annie being pregnant it kind of puts things in a different perspective that the swimming world, which can be everything to us, has now gotten a little smaller for me. Some real life things kind of can shrink the swimming world things, but, yeah, I mean, I'm just excited to race now and, yeah, very similar perspective as 2012.

Q. Matt, I think you're one of eight or nine swimmers who was in the 2000 Trials and is swimming here, and there are three of you, Michael has a child, Dana has a child, you're about to have a child. What is that like for you to, sort of, think about that journey that a handful of you have made from teenagers in 2000 to parents or parents-to-be in 2016?
MATT GREVERS: It's a really neat journey. The seven or eight of us that have been around that long, we're all great friends. I think swimming is very similar to another job. People are like, how do you manage swimming and the lifestyle and it's like, well it's like anyone that has a job if they have a job and raising a family or trying to start a family, I think it's similar balances and, again, it's talking earlier, it puts things in perspective of how important swimming can be and then you have real-life issues or miracles happening that you can really appreciate that's outside the swimming world so that's really neat.

I think swimming is a really great community and it's fun to kind of grow up with those people, trying to become parents, it's crazy. I'm going to be a parent! Still a kid!

Q. Can you talk about the difference in swimming in 2000 in a relatively small Natatorium in Indianapolis and then going to go a bigger tank pool outdoors in Long Beach and then the experiences here?
MATT GREVERS: The 2012 Trials felt big because I was little; I was 15, and I hadn't been to a meet like that before, and I was just in awe. But it was also really neat to be on deck with those big-time athletes. I heard Rowdy Gaines earlier talking about the experience, and that experience that you can get swimming at a Trials is really good. It's really good to give you a perspective and focus for the next time around.

For me, yeah, 2000 Trials, like I said, it seemed big, so I don't know about the size but, yeah, I was there to get autographs and meet my idols. In 2004, outdoor swimming is tough. I think for midwesterners, which was me at the time, it's very difficult to swim outdoors. I came out of the 100 Backstroke bleeding down both Lats, because I was hitting the lane line all the time, just because I never really learned to swim outdoors, so I think there is a big disadvantage there, but if the Olympics are going to be outdoors, that makes sense.

Then 2008, for me, it was a very serious event, and this is also the coolest pool I'd ever been to. At that point in 2008, I'd never seen or had an experience of a swim meet like this, fireworks and that green waterfall and just a huge Jumbotron.

I remember swimming the 100 Backstroke Final, the last 25, and looking at the Jumbotron and trying to figure out which one was me, and seeing I was in the top three, I had a chance and just getting a bust of adrenaline, and you don't get to see a huge Jumbotron of yourself at normal meets. Just the size of the meet felt tremendous, and it gave you an opportunity for tremendous things. You felt like you had to perform to the level of the environment, and this is one of the coolest environments, and now it's a familiar environment, which is really good to me, just for comfort, I think. Being comfortable gives you confidence, and confident swimming is fast swimming.

Q. You mentioned anxiety. What do you do to clear your head and get ready to compete and, second, when you come to a venue like this, what do you do to get used to the surroundings?
MATT GREVERS: To get used to the surroundings, just walk around and refamiliarize yourself with everything. It is very familiar from last time so I know what to expect. To reduce anxiety, I go through my routines. I can't stress enough how important routines are for swimmers. It's similar to what I just said. Doing your routine gives you comfort, comfort, confidence, confidence eases your anxiety. So that's kind of -- I just do my same stretches, the same things before bed and same shaving rituals, just stuff to get you comfortable.

That usually -- just being here reduces anxiety, because you're like, I'm here, I know what to do. Beforehand I get a little more nervous but I think it's fun. It's like an adrenaline rush. It's fun anxiety.

THE MODERATOR: Thanks Matt.

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