The Bears started off the season red-hot, finishing the dual meet season undefeated. In the past years, Cal has been notoriously known as a slow starter.

The Bears also had a solid finish to the season with a runner-up against a top field in the NCAAs. However, the highlight of the season was winning the Pac-12s with a score of 825 to 800 over Stanford.

In the past four years, the No. 2 men’s swimming team has enjoyed an unprecedented run of success with two runner-up finishes and two national championships.

“We had many firsts this season, such as winning the Pac-12 championships,” Cal coach David Durden said. “It was an historic moment and we’ve had the best four-year stretch of swimming in our history.”

At the Pac-12 Championships, senior Tom Shields was again named the 2013 Pac-12 Swimmer of the Meet. As a multi-event threat, Shields demonstrated versatility by participating in a variety of races, winning the 100 fly, 100 back and 200 fly races and a pair of relay races. Shields finished his career with a staggering total of 16 Pac-12 titles.

The key to winning the Pac-12 championship was winning the relays. Cal’s relay teams pulled out important victories to give Cal momentum into the next day. The 200 medley relay team finished with another medley title — Cal’s sixth in row.

Freshman Jacob Pebley, senior Trevor Hoyt, Shields and sophomore Seth Stubblefield also combined to capture the 400 medley relay.

“The key to our success was our performance in the morning prelims that put us in position to score points,” coach Durden said. “We capped it off with a nice race in the 400 medley relay.

“It is amazing to think about snapping the 31-year streak of Stanford’s and all of the great teams that they have held off over the years.”

Riding their momentum into the NCAAs, the Bears finished second to No. 3 Michigan. The Wolverines wound up winning its first NCAA title since 1995.

Despite falling short from winning the NCAAs for the third consecutive year, the Bears broke two American records in the 200 medley relay and the 200 fly race by Shields.

The 200 medley relay reset the American record by four-tenths of a second, with a time of 1:23.17. Shields continued his dominance by securing a national title in the 200 fly, tying Michael Phelps’s American record time of 1:39.65.

The lack of another national trophy was a sore spot, but Durden believed the team exceeded expectations.

“Looking at the nuts and bolts, second place finish was an overachieving performance even for us,” said coach Durden.

The Bears will miss the leadership and scoring of Shields and the other seniors, who ushered in the golden era of Cal swimming. Throughout the season, Cal always relied on Shields to accumulate huge point totals, and senior Ben Hinshaw for his leadership outside the pool.

Hinshaw constantly pumped up the team with his pre-match speeches. He showed the freshmen the ropes during practice and screamed words of encouragement during meets.

They established and continued a tradition of winning. In this new era and this season of Cal swimming, the team is closer than ever and help propel each other to new heights.

“The award is the journey not the destination,” Prenot said.  “I can’t pick out a single moment; whether it’s Pac 12 championships or being runner-up at NCAAs, or our crazy weight training sessions, or spending time at the Olympic training center.

“But we really bonded and finished this season as a great team.”

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The Wolverines led the meet from the very first race from last Thursday, and they never looked back in the three-day competition. Despite the star performances of Josh Prenot and Tom Shields, the Bears finished second with 406.5 points — 73.5 points shy of Michigan’s lead.

At the Indiana University Natatorium at Indianapolis, the meet started out as a tight team race, then Michigan emerged from the pack. Cal (7-0) was within striking distance to overtake Michigan’s spot after the first day, but their chances were crushed after a lackluster team performance on Friday.

At the end of Friday, No. 3 Michigan had a Cinderella-like run and exceeded pre-tournament expectations. With a distinct advantage heading into Saturday’s mid-distance and long-distance races, the Wolverines had a comfortable 34.5-point cushion with more swimmers left for the last day than the Bears. Michigan’s Connor Jaeger won the 1,650-yard freestyle Saturday night to wrap up the Wolverines’ magical run and their first NCAA men’s swimming and diving team title since 1995.

“We didn’t have a real confidence that we would win this,” Michigan coach Mike Bottom said. “By the second day I looked at our team, and I said, ‘All right we’ve gotten in the top three, now what do you want to do?’

“They looked at me like I was crazy. They looked at me and said, ‘We came here to win.’”

Even though the Bears fell short of the title, they still had spectacular individual performances throughout the meet.

The freshman Prenot became a collegiate All-American in his first NCAA Championship final, timing at 1:42.62 to place fifth in the 200 IM. Shields ended his remarkable career with another all-around performance. On the second day of the meet, Shields blew away the field to become the national champion in the 100 fly for the third time with a time of 44.59 seconds.

He improved his own school record set at last year’s NCAAs by almost two-tenths of a second. Shields’ victory in the 100 fly is the first national title for the Bears at this year’s national meet.

Shields followed up his 100 fly performance with a national runner-up finish in the 100 back, getting bested by only two-tenths of a second by Stanford’s David Nolan.

In third day, Shields continued his dominance by securing a national title in the 200 fly, tying Michael Phelps’ American record time of 1:39.65.

In his illustrious Cal career, he is an 11-time NCAA champion, winning six individual titles and part of five national championship relays.

“Perhaps one of the most versatile college swimmers in the sport today, Tom is the absolute backbone of our program,” coach David Durden said.

“His name will definitely be among the greatest swimmers who have ever competed for Cal.”

Hunter He covers men’s swim. Contact him at hhe@dailycal.org.

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After the four-day meet spanning from March 3-6, the Cal men’s swimming team dethroned rival Stanford as Pac-12 Champions with a 825-800 score.

At King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Wash., the Bears were able to end Stanford’s streak by drawing tremendous contributions from senior Tom Shields and the relay teams. Over the stretch of the four-day meet, Cal was able to maintain its lead throughout the whole meet even after a comeback attempt by Stanford.

Cal relied on the versatile Shields to continue his dominance. As a multi-event threat, Shields demonstrated durability by participating in a variety of races and relays. He won the 100 fly, 100 back and 200 fly races and a pair of relay races.

With five first-place finishes and a second-place finish during the championship, Shields was again named the 2013 Pac-12 Swimmer of the Meet. Shields finished his career with a total of 16 Pac-12 titles.

Younger Cal players also contributed to the title pursuit. Setting the Pac-12 meet record in 400 IM with a time of 3:41.82, freshman Josh Prenot continued his successful season and led the freshman group.

With the relays usually being the last event of each day. Cal’s relay teams pulled out important victories to give Cal more momentum for the next day. The relay team, consisting of Shields, junior Tony Cox, senior Trevor Hoyt and junior Shayne Fleming, finished with a 200 medley title — Cal’s sixth in row — and a runner-up finish in 800 free relay.

Pebley, Hoyt, Shields and sophomore Seth Stubblefield also combined to capture the 400 medley relay.

“The key to our success tonight was our performance in the morning prelims that put us in position to score points,” coach David Durden said. “We capped it off with a nice race in the 400 medley relay.”

Through most of the meet, Stanford was also within reach of taking Cal’s first-place throne. The Cardinal were led by sophomore Dave Nolan, who set a new Pac-12 record in the 200 back timing in 1:40.39.

On the last day of the meet, Stanford seniors Aaron Wayne and Andrew Saeta took second and fifth respectively in the 100 free to narrow Cal’s lead, 673-662.

But the Cardinal’s dream for its 32nd consecutive title fell short. Cal soon broke away from the Pac-12 pack by placing in three of the top six spots of the 200 breast on the last day.

Although Nolan won the race for Stanford, the 200 breast race solidified Cal’s first Pac-12 title since 1981.

“I am proud of the way our men competed over the last three and a half days,” Durden said. “It is amazing to think about a 31-year streak such as Stanford’s and all of the great teams that they have held off over the years.”

Hunter He covers men’s swim. Contact him at hhe@dailycal.org

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At Federal Way, Wash., the Bears was able to end Stanford’s streak by getting tremendous contributions from senior Tom Shields and the relay teams. Cal relied on the versatile Shields to continue his dominance. As a multi-event threat, he demonstrated durability by racing in a variety races and relays and coming out with victories in the 100 fly, 100 back and 200 fly races.

Setting the Pac-12 meet record in 400 IM with a time of 3:41.82, freshman Josh Prenot was a pleasant surprise and led the freshman group that propelled Cal to victory.

With the relays always being at the end of each day, the Cal’s relay teams pulled out important victories to give Cal more momentum into the next day. The relay team consisting of Shields, junior Tony Cox, senior Trevor Hoyt and junior Shayne Fleming finished with 200 medley title for the sixth year in a row and a runner-up finish in 800 free relay.

Hoyt, Shields, freshman Jacob Pebley and sophomore Seth Stubblefield combined to capture the final event in 400 medley relay.

“The key to our success tonight was our performance in the morning prelims that put us in position to score points,” coach David Durden said. “We capped it off with a nice race in the 400 medley relay.”

Hunter He covers men’s swim. Contact him at hhe@dailycal.org

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Heading into the meet, Cal is currently ranked No. 2 with stellar wins against top-tier teams like No. 7 Stanford, No.4 USC, and No.10 Arizona.

From Sunday to next Wednesday, the Bears will face these top tier teams once again at the the Pac-12 Swimming Championships at the King County Aquatic Center at Federal Way, Wa.

This year’s Bears are no longer underdogs, which has been an uncommon theme for years past. This is due to the fact that the Bears (7-0) have been extremely successful in the dual meet season. Usually a slow starter, the Bears are peaking exactly a the right time.

“It’s awesome that we’re blossoming at the right time as a team,” Coach David Durden said. “The swimmers can surely appreciate where they have started and where they are at right now.”

Cal swimmers will look to put up contending times to qualify for the NCAAs during the Pac-12 Championships. With the new selection process, swimmers who put on “A” times, determined by the NCAA, will receive an invite. However, athletes who recorded time under the provisional “B” times, who only will qualify based on the times of their team’s relay, will not be able to swim individual events.

Cal, as a school, is only allowed to qualify 18 swimmers to the NCAAs. With the Bears having about eight swimmers receiving invites for now, the Pac-12s will serve as the perfect opportunity for the swimmers to earn their bids at their last chance.

Cal will approach this meet different than all the previous dual meets this spring.For the first time in the whole season, swimmers will have adequate rest from the constant practices.

“The practices has tapered off a bit so we can sharpen up for the meet.” junior Shayne Fleming said. “We go from having no rest for the dual meets to having the minimum amount of rest to qualify for NCAAs.”

The eight Bears who already qualify including the relay team are the stars that were expected to qualify to the NCAAs. Senior star Tom Shields and freshman Jacob Pebley, holders of the second best time in 100 fly and best time in 200 back in the nation respectively, are the most well-known.

Fleming, who has a time of 19.78 in 50 free is only half a second away from the “A” group times, will look to cement his bid into the big dance. Adam Hinshaw will also look to have a big day as he is only 3 seconds away from the “A” group in 500 free and 12 second away in 1650 free.

Overall, the team has sky high confidence. With their main goal focused on trying to qualify as many swimmers as possible, many of the athletes will give their all to post their best times of the season to receive that golden invite to the NCAAs.

“We’re not feeling any pressure even at this point of the season,” coach Durden said. “We know our potential and what we can achieve.”

Hunter He covers men’s swim. Contact him at hhe@dailycal.org

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Last spring, swim coaches around the nation ranked the Bears’ fourth in their power rankings. This year, the players are the ones with the targets on their back, ranking first in this year’s edition.

But Cal will be feeling the loss of some key members from last year’s squad.

The team lost four seniors from the championship squad, including Martin Liivamagi. Liivamagi is the school record-holder in the 200 and 400 IM and was a key player in the Bears winning the 2010 and 2011 NCAA championships.

But the Bears maintain most of their top talents, including their stellar sprint relay quartet of Shayne Fleming, Fabio Gimondi, Tom Shields and Seth Stubblefield. All but Fleming were part of last year’s national champion relay team.

Cal also bolstered its roster with twelve new members in the fall who composed the second-best recruiting class in the nation.

And perhaps most importantly, the Bears have a committed group of veterans invested in not just their own individual success but the team’s as well.

The new leaders on the team are not necessarily the highest scorers nor the fastest swimmers. Seniors Ben Hinshaw, Nick Trowbridge and Trevor Hoyt serve as player-coaches for the team and do more than just swim fast.

They keep the team organized during practice and encourage the younger players to integrate themselves into the team culture.

In a way to foster a family-like environment that defines the program, the team traditionally trains in Colorado Springs during winter break. This winter break, all the players lived, ate and trained together every day without the company of their real families.

“I don’t solely put success on performance but on smiles I see and the memories we create,” senior Tom Shields said. “If we created a right family attitude and we each get better individually, success is inevitable.”

Individually, the Bears will rely once again on Shields, sophomore Will Hamilton and junior Marcin Tarczynski to carry the team to their three-peat aspirations.

The three swimmers spent their fall and winter training for the NCAAs. Shields, who did not compete with Cal during the fall, went to Istanbul last December to swim in the FINA World Cup to challenge himself against world-class talent.

The experience Shields acquired from the World Cup paid immediate dividends in the first meet back from winter break against No. 1 Arizona. Shields led the Bears to victory by winning both the 100 and 200 fly.

The Bears will continue their rigorous training and preparations for the next eight weeks until NCAAs. They will be facing top-tier teams USC, Arizona and Stanford twice each in both dual meets and the Pac-12 championships.
Arizona and USC, alongside No. 1 Michigan, will be the toughest challenges to Cal when the four teams converge at Indianapolis, Ind., for NCAAs in late March.

One unique aspect of the swimming program is that the team takes dual meets and the Pac-12 championship as training opportunities rather than competitions of utmost importance.

For the Bears, the main act does not start until NCAAs. Then, the curtains open and for the first time they will be rested and ready to race for another Championship.

“In the spring, we will use the dual meets to see where we are and up to that mind we maintain a high level of focus,” Shields said. “Then, at last NCAA, we sort of break our rhythm, and we finally start counting our points.”

Hunter He covers men’s swim. Contact him at hhe@dailycal.org

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Riding that momentum, they  continued their domination throughout the meet. In the 200 medley, the Bears were down a full second after the first two legs. Then, senior Tom Shields closed the gap against junior Wildcat Giles Smith to set up the anchor leg. In the last leg, junior Shayne Fleming overtook senior Nicholas Popov and propelled Cal to victory with a time of 1:27.59 to 1:27.81.

“It was impressive for us to come to Arizona, which has a very strong team and performs well at home, and come out with a win,” said Cal coach David Durden. “A key was coming from behind to win the first event (200 medley relay).”

The highly anticipated meet against the Wildcats showed that Cal will continue to be national powerhouse in the swimming world. Last Friday, they captured the win with a score of 159-134 in Tucson, Ariz.

The Bears left no room for the Wildcats to make a comeback. They kicked off the meet by placing first in the 200 medley, 1000 freestyle and 200 freestyle. Tom Shields and junior Jeremy Bagshaw leds the Cal in the pool and finished with two victories apiece.

Coming back from the World Championships after skipping his fall season, Shields captured the 100, timing in at 46.54, and 200 fly, timing in at 1:46.02. Bagshaw led the distance crew by finishing first in 1000 free with a time of 9:17.06.

Toward the end, Arizona closed the gap but could not overcome the lead. They placed first in the last event, 400 free relay, with a time of 2:58.76. Star sophomore Kevin Cordes continued to dominate in breaststroke and won the 100 breast with a time of 54.55.

The Wildcats also had a promising showing from their midyear transfer, freshman Michael Meyer. In his first race as a Wildcat, he won the 400 IM with a time of 3:57.51. Ultimately, they did not have enough to make up for Cal’s early victories.

Coming off an exciting win against No. 1 Arizona the day before, the Bears showed no signs of slowing down at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Complex in Tempe, Ariz. Last Saturday, Cal (4-0) continued its undefeated season against the Sun Devils.

“We’re racing with our heart even though we might not be physically prepared,” junior Shayne Fleming said. “We haven’t had much rest, and we’re just trying to work hard and sharpen up from here.”

The Bears are preparing themselves for their main focuses in the Pac-12 and the NCAAs. After defeating No. 1 Arizona, they will continue their tough schedule by facing two top-tier teams in USC and Stanford next month.

“We’re shaking off a lot of our racing rust from break,” Durden said. “We have a lot of good competitions right off the gate, and our guys are itching to finally to be able to race. That’s the fun part.

Hunter He covers men’s swim. Contact him at hhe@dailycal.org.

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This dual meet will be a nationally televised showdown between two NCAA favorites. On Friday, Jan. 25, the two teams will face off at Hillenbrand Aquatic Center at 2 p.m. Cal will look forward to avenging last year’s loss to the Wildcats, who represent its toughest opponent this season.

Physically, the Bears have continued their regular training routines. Mentally, they will be willing their fatigued bodies to the finish line. This meet will likely have huge implications for the rankings.

Not wanting to miss this premier matchup, Shields returns from an excellent showing at the World Cup. He swam the third-fastest 200-yard butterfly in history, timing in at 1:40.30. A multi-event threat, he will be the key to victory for Cal. With a chance to win his third consecutive NCAA title, he is returning for his senior season to try to repeat his “Swimmer of Meet” performance at last year’s championships.

“It is nice to look up on the blocks and see him there,” coach David Durden said. “He is the type of athlete that you’re excited to see what he is going to do every time he steps up on the blocks.”

Arizona will look to match up with Shields with its own top-tier talent. The Wildcats had a great fall, which landed them on the first spot in the rankings. Star sophomore Kevin Cordes, who owns the nation’s top times in 100 (51.10) and 200 breast (1:50.73), will look to take advantage of Cal’s thin lineup in the breaststroke event.

This bout will be a rematch of last season’s battle in which Arizona defeated Cal 191-109 at Spieker Aquatics Complex. Against the Bears, Arizona will look to exploit its medley advantage in which it has the nation’s top times in the 200 medley (1:24.84) and 400 medley (3:05.69) relays.

“Arizona has been a historically fast starting program, which explains their top times in a lot of events this year,” coach Durden said. “They also have great depth because of their influx of younger guys.”

The Bears are looking forward to the challenge as they begin a tough stretch of the spring schedule, during which they will face four highly ranked collegiate swimming teams in the country. They are entering into the part of the season during which they are sharpening up their training and focusing on racing fast.

Having not raced for a long time, both powerhouses will look to set a tone for the spring with this meet. People will finally witness Shields’ long-awaited return to collegiate swimming. These two teams should provide an interesting and competitive meet for the country to see.

“This will be a good competition right off the gate,” Durden said.

“Guys are itching to race again after going through so much training. It’s time to shake off the racing rust and finally have some fun.”

Hunter He covers men’s swim. Contact him at hhe@dailycal.org

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For the first time, the Cal men will have a first crack at these high-tech suits at the Georgia Invite on Nov.  30.

Even though they are not full- body like the banned suits, they provide an undeniable advantage for the Bears. These special suits will compress the body and transforms different physiques into ideal form for swimming. They do not impede movement or the ability to take deep breaths.

With the special suits on and in an indoor environment, the Bears will likely put on one of their best performances of the year to wrap up the fall season. At the Gabrielsen Natatorium in the Athens, Ga., the Bears will face their steepest competition that includes a field of No.4 Texas, No. 9 Virginia, No. 11 Georgia and No. 16 Auburn.

The Bears will also look forward to usher in a more competitive and race-filled spring season. With the invite having NCAA qualifications, Cal swimmers will be looking to place their bids even this early into the season.

“This meet will be more competitive, and the suits will make a difference,” coach David Durden said. “The buoyancy and streamlined shape of the suits will provide substantial time drops.”

The end of the fall season signals the gradual switch for the team to go lighter on practices and put more emphasis on their performance.

So far, the team is training with consistency and perfecting its technique in practice, looking to maximize their yardage during practice. The team placed greater importance on strength training and endurance.

“In the fall, we want better training to translate us into better racers in the spring,” Jacob Pebley says.

But in the spring, the team will ease up in its training schedule and make sure the swimmers are fine-tuned for  the meets. Come NCAA time, the swimmers will cut down on their weight training and yardage during practice.

Cal has predictably better times in the upcoming meets with  the swimmers settling into its designated strokes.

However knowing coach Durden and past history, the swimmers will not peak at their highest level until the NCAA championships.

This invite will emulate the NCAA championships’ format and give the swimmers a feel for the three-day stretch meet style. In the indoor stadium, the meetwill last from early in the day to late at night.

It is a great opportunity for the freshmen to get used to the fast-paced racing and the dragged-out meets.

The invite brings a fitting end to the fall season and will give a glimpse of what is to come in the spring.

“This invite will provide a conclusion to the fall,” said coach Durden. “In the spring, there will be more opportunities to race in the Pac-12 season and NCAA. We will come a bit more together as a team.”

Hunter He covers men’s swim. Contact him at hhe@dailycal.org

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The crowd at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Wash. fervently cheered Tarczynski.  But when he turned around to look at the crowd, all of them were strangers. None of his family members from Poland showed up.

And that’s the way he like it.

“I haven’t told my parents to come here because I feel like I am so busy here, and I wouldn’t be able to spend time with them,” Tarczynski says. “I have been away from home ever since I was young.”

All his life, Tarczynski had two spheres of thought in his mind: The swimming side and the personal side.

He has been accustomed to the divide between family and swimming.  Swimming is his dream, and many times over, it forced him to relinquish the family bond for the pool.

Since his high school years, Tarczynski carried a mindset of professionalism to his swimming career. The individual nature of swimming has made him callused from mixing together his two lives.

Tarczynski wanted to shield his family from the cutthroat environment of international swimming. So, Tarczynski drew a fine line between them.

“Professional swimming is more about individuals, not as much as team, and there is less support,” Tarczynski says. “People are not as close.”

Since his childhood days in Warsaw, Poland, Tarczynski displayed his athletic prowess to his family. It didn’t take long for them to realize that Marcin was a gifted swimmer.

At a very young age, he began competing in the Junior Euro Swim championships and the National Poland championships. As a teenager, he was already dedicating most of his time to training.

“Swimming is not like most team sports, where athletes take longer time to mature and develop,” Cal men’s swimming coach David Durden says. “Swimmers can hit a peak at the age of 15 and their skills supersede their age.”

Unlike homegrown stars in the United States, teenage athletes in Europe dedicate themselves solely to their sport. In many cases, they leave their homes and family behind at a young age to acquire the best training possible for their career.

During his high school years, his parents decided that he would move to a swimming facility in Madrid, Spain for the best trainers and environment possible.

Even though he had to depart due his swimming aspirations, he soon suffered from homesickness. Despite Madrid and Warsaw being less than 3,000 miles apart, for Tarczynski, it felt more like 300,000 miles.

“When I moved to Spain, I would go home every month,” Tarczynski says. “I got very homesick, and it was a crazy transition to make.”

While dedicating himself solely to training, he had to deal with a new environment and break the language barrier. Without the protection of his family, he had to mature in a hurry and assimilate himself into the rigid, dog-eat-dog world of competitive swimming.

At such a tender age, he had to learn to be independent and deal with recurring thoughts of homesickness. He is still close and and talks to his family back home regularly, but he had to learn how to deal with their physical absence.

There were countless swimmers from foreign lands living in Spain like him, and they called themselves “men of visitors”. They all left their families in Portugal, Poland, United States and other countries to pursue the same dream.

Even though he trained in Spain, Tarczynski still had to travel around the world to compete. He participated in countless tournaments and meets in a myriad of different countries to compete against the best swimmers worldwide.

“I have travelled to South Africa, United States, London for the Olympics and almost every single country in Europe for the sake of swimming,” Tarczynski says. “It was a difficult transition having to pick up on languages.”

In the summer of 2010 in Spain, Tarczynski trained under coach Bart Kizierowski, a Cal alumnus. Kizierowski introduced Tarczynski to the idea of coming to America.

For Tarczynski, Kizierowski was the inspiration and informant into collegiate swimming programs and experience in America. After years of spending in the world of competitive swimming, Tarczynski was attracted to the collegiate life of balancing athletics and academics and emphasizing the team spirit.

With the craving of finding a swimming community to call his own, Tarczynski committed to Durden’s program that summer. The team did everything from the start to make Tarczynski, the swimming nomad, feel at home in Berkeley

“I was moved by the fact that right when I got off the plane, my teammates called to pick me up (from the airport),” Tarczynski says. “My life is more structured in Berkeley. The friendly attitude translated into the whole team, and the team spirit here at Cal is something I have never seen.”

Now as junior, Tarczynski slowly developed into a leader amongst his teammates. He leads by action, not by words — he has been an exemplary workhorse that is always last out of the pool after practice.

He is driven by his own self-discoveries and his dedication to swimming. After living years away from his homeland, Tarczynski has become an independent person always determined to go beyond even his ultimate goals.

This past summer in London, Tarczynski reached his lifelong goal of becoming an Olympian for the Polish national men’s swimming team. Despite not reaching the finals, Tarczynski reminisces the experiences with fondness.

His bildungsroman journey from Poland to Spain to Berkeley were all to one day reach the Olympics. By separating his swimming career from his family and sacrificing years of his childhood, he followed a path that was callous but rewarding.

When his professional swimming career is over, Tarczynski hopes to settle down in the United States and pursue a career as a doctor.

While swimming split Tarczynski from his family for extended periods, it has given him new opportunities.

After years of roaming around the world making a name for himself, he has finally found a home away from home.

Hunter He covers men’s swim. Contact him at hhe@dailycal.org

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