College Recruit Rankings Profile: Five-Star Melanie Klaren, Class of 2011

By Reed Shimberg

PHOENIX, Arizona, June 3. MELANIE Klaren, a five-star recruit from the class of 2011, is the next subject in the Swimming World College Recruit Rankings Profiles series. Klaren lives in Laguna Niguel, Calif., and swims for Mission Viejo under Coach Bill Rose. She attends Aliso Niguel High School.

She owns U.S. senior national cuts in the 100m (56.84), 200m (2:00.71), 400m (4:15.12), 800m (8:47.39) and the 100m (1:02.22) and 200m (2:15.09) backstroke.

Klaren maintains her profile in the Swimming World College Recruit Rankings.

What is your favorite set?
My favorite set would probably have to be anything involving fast 100s or 200s with a lot of rest in between. We do a set of 5 3x100s with the last one all out and that's probably one of my favorites.

Least favorite set?
Anything involving distance free or IM… or breaststroke.

What colleges are you looking at right now?
I am still a junior at Aliso Niguel High School and haven't committed to a school. However, I am looking at University of California, Berkeley and University of Texas and I hope to take trips there in the fall.

What is your favorite swimming-related memory?
My favorite memory is probably making the National Youth Team last year and going to Canada with Team USA. Getting the big bag of clothes and gear was awesome, and I had a blast on the trip and met so many great people.

Who do you look up to in the world of swimming?
Dana Vollmer

What do you consider to be your breakthrough moment in swimming?
My breakthrough moment would have to be making my first Trial cut in the 200 free at Junior Nationals in 2008 and going from barely in top 24 to placing sixth.

What is your daily schedule with school and practice and such?
Depending on the day, I wake up at 4:30 and drive to practice, which starts at 5. I swim for about an hour and get out at 6:15. From there, I go to school until 12:30 3 days a week and 2:40 2 days a week. Next, I go to afternoon practice at either 1:30 or 3:30, which is 2 hours long. I go home, do homework, eat, facebook, and then go to sleep.

What are your long and short-term goals?
My long term goal is to win at NCAAs and short term is to make the Junior Pan Pac Team this summer.

What is something that people wouldn't know about you?
I can sleep anywhere and at anytime.

What type of input do you have in your training (versus your coach)?
I get to pick and choose what days I do distance vs. specialty. Coach Rose usually will tell me when it's time for a distance day, but usually I get to pick.

What are you interested in studying in college?
I love reading and I really want to pursue a career as a book editor.

Why swimming?
Honestly, I'm one of the most uncoordinated people I know on land. In the water, I'm a lot more at home and it comes naturally to me. My dad was a swimmer and got me interested in the sport when I was five, and I've loved it ever since.

Did you do other sports?
Believe it or not, I was a competitive dancer until the age of eight and had to choose which sport I wanted to keep on pursuing.

What is your favorite food?
My favorite foods are chocolate cookies and blueberry muffins.

What are your favorite movies?
Pride and Prejudice, When Harry Met Sally, and Valley Girl.

What keeps you motivated in the pool?
My coach and teammates. Training with Chloe Sutton is pretty awesome because she has an amazing work ethic and she pushes me to be better in practice which translates at meets. I love the atmosphere at my team and the challenges that Coach Rose always puts in front of me.

What is like to train with Chloe Sutton everyday?
Swimming with Chloe is awesome. She's so passionate for the sport and has a great ethic. It's a challenge to keep up with her in practice and she really motivates me.

What opportunities has swimming opened up for you?
Swimming has given me the opportunity to travel, get into college, and get a first-class education.

What do you want to get out of swimming?
I really want to be the best teammate and person I can be. I want to have a sense of accomplishment and hopefully help my college team to win a NCAA championship.

Do you consider yourself a role model?
I consider myself a role model in the aspect that I am a part of a large team (Mission Viejo) and we have a lot of younger kids that look up to all of us in the National Team. I strive to be a good student and swimmer and find a good balance between the two.

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