The Olympics was a goal, and definitely, swimming in college was a goal.
Popov was double Olympic champion in '92 and '96, and then Gary Hall came along and won in 2000 and 2004, and I would be the next on the list. That's a good goal, to have my name on that list alongside these guys.
Aaron Peirsol was the man. Ryan Lochte is also insane. Like, if Phelps wasn't around, we'd all be talking about Ryan Lochte as the dude who changed everything, because he's insane as well.
I swam in high school.
Michael Phelps wouldn't have been on the Wheaties box if I stuck with swimming. I've been swimming since I was a little kid. I still swim. I'm the best.
When I was 10, I went to the Junior Olympics for the 50-meter and 100-meter breaststroke.
My whole swimming career was about training to beat Michael Phelps in any race I possibly could.
Being compared to Ian Thorpe, that could be one of the greatest compliments you could ever get in swimming - being compared to him and Mark Spitz.
I was an avid swimmer and was state champ at age 12.
You're either an Olympian or not in swimming.
I was a competitive swimmer in middle school and high school.
I was the only swimmer in movies. Tarzan was long gone, and he couldn't have done them anyway; he could never have gotten into my bathing suit.
Both my kids are international swimmers and national champions.
There's not that many great swimmers from Brooklyn.
I want to test my maximum and see how much I can do. And I want to change the world of swimming.
I grew up in Florida, so you start swimming at the age of 1, really. By 10, I was competitive swimming, and by 12, I had aspirations to be the best in the world.
People said women couldn't swim the Channel, but I proved they could.
