Farewell to Arms (and Legs)

Photo Courtesy: Griffin Scott

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By Michael J. Stott

Fifty-six of the 1885 swimmers that qualified for Olympic Trials will compose the 2016 USA Olympic swim team. Thomas Stephens, a seven-time NCAA All-American, entered in the 100 and 200 meter freestyles, will not be among them. And that’s okay with him.

A top-ten 200 free recruit coming out of The Collegiate School in Richmond, Va., Stephens graduated from Stanford in 2015 with a degree in Management Science and Engineering. Since then he has been pursuing a Masters degree in Palo Alto with swim training consisting of lifting and club water polo.

“I was going to scratch the 200,” he said, “but David [Nolan] told me I couldn’t. I am going to do the best I can and see if I can go a 1:54 or 1:55. I think I can go 51 in the 100. Stephens’ best times are 1:50.19 (which had him seeded 41st out of 115 swimmers) and 50.35 (51st out of 98). While his training may appear minimal, he did swim in a high school alumni heat last December and posted a 45 in the 100-yard free. But this week, his mother is just hoping that officials don’t disqualify him for delay of meet.

“I’m doing this just for the competition. After that it is just spectating and watching Drew [Cosgarea], David, Lia [Neal] and Maya [DiRado]. I’ll be watching Townley [Haas]. I’m excited to see these people on the biggest stage,” Stephens said.

“This is more for teammates than just Thomas Stephens. The swimming is more a convenience, a free ticket. It is not some personal vendetta to prove myself; it’s just for fun. It will be interesting to just truly swim for fun for the first time in a long time with nothing attached.

“I just want to get after it in the 100. If I eat it, it is just fine. I have no expectations and nothing to lose except maybe a little dignity. I’m here to see the people I care about more than trying to make the Olympics.”

A former captain of an NCSA All-Star team that went to Ireland and a Youth Olympic team member that traveled to Singapore, this meet is not what he considers the capstone of his swimming career. “That would be those relays at NCAA’s”—a quintessential experience that often binds teammates forever.

The 200 free race revisited.

This morning in his 200 heat, Stephens clocked a 1:53.37.

“I felt good for the first 75. I hadn’t used my legs yet so I put those in gear and just tried to keep up with who was next to me (Brett Pinfold, University of Wisconsin). Beating 1:54 was a “triumph,” Stephens said.

Prior to his heat, he had asked DiRado what her best 200 time was. She responded 1:57.7, “so I decided I had to put a hard cap on that. But a 600 in the warmup pool had me out of breath, so I decided to do the best I could.”

“The week has been satisfying and all about relationships. Seeing all the people you’ve raced, sweated and pushed yourself to the limit with is really great.” The college experience for him has been everything “and more” he said. “Relationships are for life. I’ll see these people in five, ten years and we’ll pick up right where we left off.”

Any regrets? “Yes. I wish I’d done 2K for the last two weeks. I’d have hurt a little less and felt a little less nauseous, but other than that—no regrets.”

Asked in a word to sum up the swim, Stephens paused, labored hard for seven seconds and uttered, “satisfying.”

Aa it should have been.

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Andrea Erard

7 years ago

Thomas Stephens is an amazing athlete. Congratulations to him!