American competitive swimmer Jake Foster chatted about his swimming career.
Texas Longhorn
He expressed that he is a proud Texas Longhorn representing the University of Texas at Austin. “It feels great. I love being in Texas,” he exclaimed. “I am going into my senior year so I have been down here for three years now. I’ve had no regrets and I loved every minute of it. If I could restart, I would do it again.”
Motivations
On his daily motivations as a swimmer, he said, “The biggest motivator that I have is that I have great friends and I’ve met great people through the sport. Knowing that all of them have my back through it all is really motivating to me. Their support keeps me going, and they make swimming enjoyable.”
Training and growing up with Carson Foster
Jake is the older brother of world champion swimmer Carson Foster. “We have basically done everything together our whole lives. We shared a room growing up and we went to the same school and the same club teams,” Jake said.
“Then, I went off to college in Texas and he had to stay home for a year so that was the first separation that we’ve had a part from one another. In our training, we feed off each other and we are best friends,” Jake added.
Mizuno
A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Foster recently signed with Mizuno Swim. “Carson and I started wearing Mizuno back in 2015,” he said. “Ever since we switched to Mizuno, we haven’t worn any other brand. I am grateful that I’ve gotten to sign with them. I love wearing Mizuno alongside Carson.”
On being a swimmer in the digital age, he said, “Technology has pros and cons to it. Sometimes, it is best for swimmers to unplug a little bit and stay off of social media.”
Favorite stroke in swimming
He listed “the breaststroke” as his personal favorite stroke in the sport, and he added that “it has always been that way.” “The breaststroke is the one that clicks the best for me and I connect with it really well,” he said. “Obviously, I like the IM too.”
On the title of the current chapter of his life, Jake said, “Pieces Falling Together.” “For a while, it has been swimming and school and trying to manage a social life a little bit. I’m majoring in Biology and I want to go to medical school. I feel that I am at a point in my life where things are tweaking themselves into place, which is a good feeling. I am submitting medical school applications, which is a good feeling.”
“I am very pleased with all of the success that I’ve had in the sport, and hopefully, there will be more to come. I am feeling very at peace with all of the things that are going on in my life: socially, academically, and athletically,” he added.
If he were to have any superpower, he revealed that it would be “flying.” “Especially since gasoline is expensive, with flying you can get to places faster and you don’t have to wait through traffic,” he said.
Success
Foster defined the word success as “meeting what he is capable of.” “A lot of people set goals for themselves and reaching those goals can be a success,” he said. “Even if you don’t reach those goals, it is not necessarily a failure. As long as I gave it my best effort, and I knew in my heart that there was nothing more I could do, then it was a success.”
For his supporters, Jake concluded, “I would like to thank everyone that has followed me. I care about them a lot, and hopefully, I can return the favor to them in the future.”
Rapid Fire Questions
He also took some time to answer a few “Rapid Fire” questions.
Waffles or pancakes? Waffles
Flying or driving? Flying
City living or country living? City living
Summer or winter? Winter
Library or museum? Museum
Bath or shower? Shower
Pepsi or Coke? Coke
Texting or calling? Calling
Half-full or half-empty? Half-full
Curly fries or normal fries? Curly fries
Skydiving or scuba diving? Scuba diving Indoor pool or outdoor pool? Outdoor pool for training, indoor pool for racing
Tea or coffee? Coffee
Rain or snow? Snow
Singing or dancing? Dancing
Burgers or tacos? Burgers
Long course or short course? Long course, definitely
Money or fame? Money
To learn more about U.S. swimmer Jake Foster, follow him on Instagram.