Proud Uncle Post--Texas Women's Swimming Commit--Niece is Going For National High School Record This Weekend

NilsD · Feb 10, 2022

I copied this article from the Indy Star.

Berit Berglund could do something no other Carmel girls swimmer has done — and in style.

Medals and records would be nice, but let Carmel swimmer Berit Berglund have her pearls.

David Woods
Indianapolis Star

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CARMEL – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had the goggles, FloJo the one-legger and Tiger Woods the red polo.
Berit Berglund has her own adornment: pearl earrings.
“I love them to pop. You only see them when I’m swimming,” she said.
If the pearl is the queen of gems and the gem of queens, she is living up to royal status.
In this weekend’s state meet at the Natatorium at IUPUI, the junior swimmer could achieve something no Carmel girl has ever done: A national high school record in an individual event.
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Berit Berglund stands with teammates in between events during a swim meet between Carmel, Zionsville and Homstead on Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2021, at Carmel High School.

Berglund won the 100-yard backstroke in 51.32 seconds at December’s East junior nationals. If she duplicates that time, she would break the public school record of 51.43 that has lasted since 2012.
Carmel’s Claire Adams holds the state record of 51.65, and Berglund said breaking it “has been a huge goal of mine” since she was 10. A national record is just a couple of ticks faster.

“I think those are always just the result of being on a higher path,” Carmel coach Chris Plumb said. “I don’t think anybody gets a national high school record just to get a national high school record. You’re going to get it because it’s there and you’re hungry for it. Most of the time, it’s, ‘How do I make an Olympic team? How do I make a national junior team?’ You’re asking yourself a different question.”

There was never a question about Berglund’s competitiveness. It was all in the family.
Berglund’s older sister, Meredith, is a college swimmer at South Carolina. Her twin brother, Winston, is a safety being recruited for college football. Winston once raced Berit in the pool.
“He actually beat me one time. I was so mad,” she said.
Their father, Brent, a former Butler University football and baseball player, calls her, “Bear Bear.” That is because of Berit’s name. But before one race, she did growl at a girl in the next lane.

Berit Berglund during an interview with IndyStar on Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2021, following a swim meet at Carmel High School.

As a 7-year-old soccer player, in a back-and-forth shootout, Berglund ended a game with a goal. Then she held up her finger, signaling No. 1.
“At that time, I just remembered, ‘She’s tough. She’s fearless,’” said her mother, Alicia.
That was reinforced when Berit broke long-standing Indiana age-group records at age 10.
“People were like, ‘Wow,’" her mother said.
Berit broke such records again two years later, and she still ranks No. 3 in the 100-yard backstroke in USA Swimming history for age 12 — behind Regan Smith, a world record-holder and three-time Olympic medalist.

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Lessons from European trip

Berglund has long been immersed in Carmel culture. The twins were born in Union, Ky., and Berit was 2 when the family moved here.
She used to split time between swimming and soccer but soon gave up the latter. She has resolved to continue Carmel’s backstroke legacy — Adams won a world junior silver medal and Amy Bilquist nearly made the 2016 Olympic team.
She was also inspired by Jake Mitchell’s solo time trial to make the 2021 Olympics.
“I honestly started crying for him,” Berglund said.
She has already committed to Texas for college swimming, following three other Longhorns from Carmel: Adams, Kelly Pash and Olympian Drew Kibler.
Berglund and freshman teammate Alex Shackell are aiming at the 2024 Paris Olympics, and it is not out of the question. They are “feeding off of each other,” Plumb said.
Plumb has witnessed Berglund’s maturation closely because his son, Nick, has come up through the age-group ranks alongside her. Berglund, who is 5-10, is more confident and self-assured these days.
“When you’re an elite female athlete, it’s not like you fit in always with the crowd at school,” Plumb said. “I think when they finally just say, ‘Hey, here’s who I am. This is what I’m about,’ they get comfortable in their own skin. She’s really fun to be around when she’s like that.”
Berglund’s perspective widened when she was a part of a U.S. junior team racing in World Cup meets last October in Europe.

Berit Berglund competes in a swim meet between Carmel, Zionsville and Homstead on Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2021, at Carmel High School.

The lead-up was bumpy because she was out of the water for five weeks with a broken foot — she was playing tag in the gym and fell — and then became ill in Berlin to begin the trip. In Budapest, she made a final and finished sixth in the 100-meter backstroke.
She learned about herself, absorbed feedback from other coaches and reaffirmed a commitment to the sport. Plumb said she discovered she was good enough to be there but required more to stay there.

“It was an emotional toll it took on her,” the coach said. “She had to reconcile what it means to represent Team USA, and try to do it in the middle of the season. Since then, I think she’s been great. She’s been on a tear.”