On being with DC Trident, he said, “It’s an honor to be a part of the inaugural team. There are some really big names on there. I am excited to do something new and see how this progresses the sport of swimming.”
At the 2018 Pan Pacific Championships in Tokyo, Japan, Grothe won the gold medal in the men’s 800 meter freestyle, the silver medal in the 1,500 meter freestyle and the bronze medal in the 400 meter freestyle. “That felt good. That was almost surreal. I really didn’t expect it. Those were such good races,” he said.
Grothe holds the American and U.S. Open records in the 500 yard freestyle and the 1,650 yard freestyle respectively.
Each day, he is motivated by “personal growth.” “I want to see how good I can be regardless of the circumstances and regardless of what team I am on. I just want to see how good I can be under my own circumstances,” he said.
For young and aspiring swimmers, Grothe said, “Have fun and challenge yourselves. A lot of times, we get too caught up by comparing ourselves to other people’s lives and swims. Make sure you are enjoying your time both in training and competitions. Make sure the challenge is upon yourself.”
When asked about the best advice he has ever given, he responded, “Keep open communication with your coaches.” “That really came in handy for me because my coaches helped me fix what I thought was broken early on in my swimming career. We made some changes because of that and it paid off. It is the job of the coaches to make you better and to help you so it makes sense to give them all the feedback that you can,” he said.
Aside from his love for the freestyle races, he shared that he also enjoyed swimming “butterfly” in his younger days. “I convinced myself when I was younger that I was a butterflier,” he said.
Grothe thoroughly enjoys being a part of Olympian Josh Davis’ Breakout Swim Clinic. “Josh is great. I love doing his swim clinics. Every time he has them available, I always give him the dates that I can help him out,” he said. “Josh has so much energy and I learn something every time I work with him.”
Digital transformation of aquatics
On the impact of technology on the sport of swimming, Grothe said, “Technology is revolutionary.” “I remember growing up using an analog clock, and I remember my log used to keep a logbook with entries of my times. Technology has changed the sport immensely.”
“Now, there are all these underwater cameras that exist for filming,” he added. “The tools that we have at our disposal are incredible.”
Grothe shared that he uses NormaTec for recovery purposes. “I definitely have one and I utilize that,” he said.
He views success as “ever-changing.” “Sometimes the ultimate goal changes. I realized that you don’t have to be an Olympian to be successful,” he said. “Sometimes success comes from having fun and trying to challenge yourself. Success is the ultimate denominator for everyone’s competitive nature.”
For his fans and supporters, Grothe said, “Thank you. I can’t thank them enough for their nice comments and for reaching out to me. It feels good to know that I am making a good impact.”
To learn more about professional swimmer Zane Grothe, follow him on Instagram.
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