The Olympic medalist and U.S. swimmer Regan Smith is speaking out to show off her patriotism as she prepares for her next Olympics in Paris next month.
Smith Is Proud To Be An American
Now 22 years-old, Smith told Fox News that she first got to represent the U.S. when she was only 15.
“It almost moved me to tears,” the former Stanford swimmer said. “I had such a strong sense of pride, and I was getting up behind the blocks, and I wasn’t just swimming for me, I was swimming for the entire country behind me, who had my back and who wanted me to succeed.”
“It was just incredible to swim for something that was so much bigger than yourself,” she continued. “And I think that helped take some of the pressure off of me as well, because I was like, ‘I just want to do this to make my country proud.’ It’s just as simple as that.”
Smith won a silver and a bronze medal at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo. In Paris, she’ll have the chance to win her first gold medal. For Smith, however, getting to represent America is better than any medal.
Related: Men Will Now Team Up For Artistic Swimming At The 2024 Paris Olympics
‘I Love America So Much’
“I am such a patriotic girl. I love America so much. I am such an American girl to my core, seriously,” she explained. “It never gets old, truly. Each summer when I’ve gotten to put the American flag cap on my head and represent it, I am so unbelievably proud.”
“And every time I’m able to stand on top of a podium and put my hand on my heart and hear the national anthem play over the entire aquatic center, it’s very special,” Smith added. “It never gets old. I would say it kind of gains importance and value each time that it happens for me.”
Heading into the Olympics, Smith can’t wait to put her USA swim cap on once again.
“I’m just going to be so unbelievably excited to put that cap on and go overseas and represent the best country in the history of the world, I’d say,” Smith said. “And it’s just – it’s wonderful. It’s really, really wonderful. And I’m so proud to be American every time that I compete for my country.”
Smith Breaks Record At Olympic Trials
Smith qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics after a dominant performance at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Team Trials in Indianapolis. There, she excelled in the women’s 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke and the 200-meter fly. Smith even set a record in the 100-meter.
“I’m so proud of myself. Backstroke is hard for me sometimes, but to fight back like this and to get (the world record) back means a lot,” Smith told The New York Times afterwards.
Check out Smith’s record-breaking moment in the video below.
It’s refreshing to see a young woman like Smith who is so proud to be an American. Please join us in rooting Smith on when she represents the U.S. in the Olympics next month!
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