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Pieter Timmers talks New York Breakers, retirement from swimming (Includes interview)

On competing for the New York Breakers, he said, “It was great, actually. The team was amazing and I think we had the best atmosphere out of all the teams. We also had a family feeling. That’s amazing to be a part of.”

Tina Andrew serves as the General Manager of the New York Breakers, and Michael Andrew serves as captain of the team. “Tina is great, I’ve known her for a while. She is lovely, and the whole family is great. She is probably the hardest-working General Manager in the field, and she is doing an incredible job. Michael is doing a good job with the team. He is a great captain and he cheers everybody on. He lets everybody step up in their game,” he said.

Olympic swimmer Pieter Timmers

Olympic swimmer Pieter Timmers
Mike Lewis, Photo Courtesy of ISL

In this sophomore ISL season, Timmers performed extremely well. “I didn’t have high expectations,” he said. “I didn’t train as much as I usually do for a big meet. I had some practical issues as well, so I didn’t have high expectations but I did better than I expected. All my swims were very consistent and I am very happy with all my performances.”

Timmers just announced his retirement from competitive swimming. “I am feeling pretty good about my retirement. It’s a different ending than I wanted. Normally, I wanted to retire after the Olympics, but COVID messed that up. I am very pleased that I got to say ‘goodbye’ at this event with the New York Breakers. It was an amazing farewell. We celebrated it pretty well. It was the best way to do it,” he said.

He opened up about winning the silver medal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. “That was obviously my biggest achievement,” he said. “We knew before the race that I had a slight chance that I would win a medal, and we had a plan to do 47.80 seconds, and then, I swam 47.80 seconds on the spot, earning a silver medal. It was the best thing that could happen. It was crazy. I loved being an underdog and proving everybody wrong. That was a really good feeling.”

Olympic swimmer Pieter Timmers

Olympic swimmer Pieter Timmers
Mike Lewis, Photo Courtesy of ISL

Timmers had kind words about fellow swimmer Peter John Stevens. “Peter John is a really nice guy as well. He was a team captain for Team Iron, and he was the best captain. He’s amazing. Even though his swims weren’t the best, he gave the team so much energy. I love Peter John,” Timmers said.

He listed the freestyle as his personal favorite stroke in swimming. “Freestyle is the fastest one and it’s my best stroke, of course,” he said.

For young and aspiring swimmers, he said, “Have fun with it, even though that’s not enough. Fun brings you far but you need to look for what triggers you to push your body to its limits or over its limits, that way, you can become the best there is. Find inspirations and points to focus on and get better on.”

Timmers defined the word success as “being the best in your field.” “Being happy with what you do, even if you are not the best, but if you are happy with the achievement, then that’s a success,” he said.

“Thank you,” he told his fans and supporters. “The fans have given me a lot, especially now that I announced my retirement, and they thanked me ‘for the nice races they could watch.’ It is really lovely to read all of their fan messages, it’s amazing.”

To learn more about Olympic swimmer Pieter Timmers, follow him on Instagram.

Olympic swimmer Pieter Timmers

Olympic swimmer Pieter Timmers
Mike Lewis, Photo Courtesy of ISL

Markos Papadatos
Written By

Markos Papadatos is Digital Journal's Editor-at-Large for Music News. Papadatos is a Greek-American journalist and educator that has authored over 20,000 original articles over the past 18 years. He has interviewed some of the biggest names in music, entertainment, lifestyle, magic, and sports. He is a 16-time "Best of Long Island" winner, where for three consecutive years (2020, 2021, and 2022), he was honored as the "Best Long Island Personality" in Arts & Entertainment, an honor that has gone to Billy Joel six times.

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