Swimmer Regan Smith turns pro, leaves Stanford to be coached by Bob Bowman

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Swimmer Regan Smith, a three-time Tokyo Olympic medalist, turned skilled after her freshman 12 months of faculty, leaving Stanford to be coached by Bob Bowman at Arizona State.

“After an amazing quantity of reflection and soul-searching, I’ve chosen to pursue my aggressive swimming targets as knowledgeable athlete,” Smith mentioned in a press launch. “After spending a considerable a part of the final two years on my psychological sport, it’s time to concentrate on growing my coaching depth. I’m fully assured that Bob’s management and coaching may have me precisely the place I wish to be for Paris 2024. I imagine that, in the long term, that is one of the simplest ways for me to proceed to develop as an athlete.”

Smith, 20, received 200m butterfly silver and 100m backstroke bronze on the Tokyo Olympics, plus silver on the ladies’s medley relay. In June, she received the world title within the 100m again, three years after profitable the 200m again world title.

Smith broke each backstroke world data on the 2019 World Championships, then deferred matriculating at Stanford for one 12 months after the Olympics have been postponed by one 12 months because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Minnesota native nonetheless holds the 200m again world file.

“I’m suspending my school diploma to maximise my athletic aggressive window and couldn’t be extra excited for this journey,” Smith mentioned within the launch. “I wish to thank [Stanford coaches] Greg Meehan and Tracy Slusser, the Stanford workers and my Stanford teammates for his or her unwavering help and I want them continued success.”

Bowman, the career-long coach of Michael Phelps, has been the pinnacle coach at Arizona State since 2015. His school group contains Frenchman Leon Marchand, who swept the boys’s particular person medleys at worlds.

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