KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Missy Franklin is so excited about everything that comes with being a U.S. Olympian, she’s even thrilled to have her blood drawn.
The 17-year-old student at Regis Jesuit High School is at her first training camp as an Olympian, and the only drawback for swimming in seven events at the London Games is being separated from her parents. That made Thursday a special day; her father, Dick, arrived in time for dinner and a trip to the movies to watch “Finding Nemo.”
Franklin said not seeing her parents every day has been difficult — even with Skype, phone calls and constant text messages. Her favorite word to describe her experience seems to be “awesome.” She is enjoying herself so much, she can’t pick out just one favorite part of being at the Olympic training camp for Team USA swimmers.
“Everything,” Franklin said with a laugh. “It has been so much fun just being able to lie in bed at night and realize that I am at an Olympic training camp. It’s just the coolest thing ever and getting to know my teammates so much more.
“My teammate, Kate Ziegler, and I had quite the adventure this morning getting our blood drawn, so that was fun. We’ve been able to go out and have a few dinners out. That’s so nice.”
No wonder Franklin will be swimming in seven events in London. There is no reason for her to be forced to pick and choose when at 6-foot-1, the teenager with size 13 feet swims so very well in so many events. Her youthful exuberance is something veteran teammate Natalie Coughlin thinks will help Franklin once she arrives in London, where a thousand reporters and a variety of languages and translators await on a stage that is very different from the world championships. Coughlin said the world championships are very big; Franklin swam there in Shanghai last year. But Coughlin added that nothing compares to the Olympics, and being young can be a big help at the Games.
“There is just a wonder, freshness and naivety that helps manage all the expectations and all the pressures,” said Coughlin, who swam in the 2004 and 2008 Olympics. “You have to have a lot of fun. All the young kids on the team are going to do very, very well.”
Franklin sounds ready to do just that, even as she prepares to swim in seven events, including the 100- and 200-meter freestyle, 100- and 200-meter backstroke, 400-meter freestyle relay and 800-meter freestyle relay. Her biggest challenge while training at the University of Tennessee has been conserving her energy. She got a taste of that during the Olympic trials in Omaha.
At the training camp, the Olympians are swimming so hard that Franklin said she doesn’t have as much energy as she will in London. Team USA will have another training camp in France, where Franklin will have to perform in a skit as an Olympic rookie. Then the Americans will arrive in London, where the Olympics start July 27.
“I need to make sure I’m doing what’s best for me, and that’s making sure I’m ready to explode once I get to the Olympics,” Franklin said.
“Everywhere we go (in Knoxville), we’re getting ‘good luck’ and ‘congratulations’ from everyone we meet when we’re walking down the street,” she said. “To have the whole town behind us is the best.”
