MU swimmer qualifies for U.S. Olympic Trials
Junior Bennett Clark will focus on the Big 12 Championships before trials begin.
Published Jan. 30, 2007
Many athletes dream of competing in the Olympics. For MU swimmer Bennett Clark, that dream might just come true. Clark, a junior, qualified this summer in the 50- and 100-meter freestyle for the 2008 Olympic Trials.
"It's always been a dream of mine to compete in the Olympics," Clark said. "There's an outside chance I'll get to if I work hard."
Clark's swimming career began more than a decade ago, when his interest was more about having a good time with his buddies than collecting medals.
"When I was younger, I had a bunch of friends who swam and I wanted to do it because it was what my friends were doing," Clark said. "I remember being a little, hyper kid running around everywhere with my friends, causing a lot of trouble. When I first started swimming, it was more about my friends than the meet."
A natural athlete
Athletics seem to come naturally to Clark and he was a four-sport athlete at Kirkwood High School in St. Louis. His interest in all types of sports helped him take to the water naturally.
"I've always been a pretty good swimmer," Clark said. "I've always played a lot of different sports, which I think helped. In high school I got stronger (and) I improved."
Clark improved all the way to Division I swimming. Now Clark's pre-race ritual is simple, a stark contrast from his younger years.
"The half hour before my race, I always listen to music," Clark said. "I'll play something to get me really fired-up. I don't like to talk to people right before my race. I try to get as intense as I can because I swim better the more fired-up I am."
Getting a race as "personal as possible" is a technique Clark uses to get ready for the competition.
"When I am behind the blocks, I take it personally that that team is trying to beat me," Clark said. "(My opponent is) going to do whatever he can to beat me, and I'm not going to let it happen. I'm trying to create some competition to get me more fired-up."
In his long swimming career, Clark's favorite meet was this summer in Irvine, Calif.
"This past summer at the U.S. Nationals was probably the coolest swimming experience so far," Clark said. "The best swimmers in the country were there and two world records were broken. It was cool to see all the Olympians and people you see on TV."
It was at the U.S. Nationals that Clark qualified for the 2008 Olympic Trials.
"Out of everyone in the country, I got 21st on the 50 freestyle," he said. "I hope to keep getting better and make the top 10."
If Clark garners a top-six spot at the trials, he will have a place on the U.S. Olympic relay team. Coach Brian Hoffer said he has faith in Clark's abilities.
"I definitely feel he's capable of it," Hoffer said. "He's a big time racer. He'll get excited, and he'll do it."
MU teammate Travis Floyd said he is grateful for the talent Clark has brought to the team.
"He's done a lot for the team," Floyd said. "He's a great competitor."
Being a great competitor on a D-1 swimming team requires lots of hard work and training.
"We spend around 17-18 hours in the water a week," Clark said. "That's the NCAA requirement. Three to four hours of weights and dry land, abs and stretch cords and stuff like that."
One of Clark's swimming role models is Alexander Popov, an Olympian and world record holder in the 50- and 100-meter freestyle, the two events for which Clark qualified.
"He was really fast and had a really long stroke and long arms," Clark said. "He was very long and strong. That's what I try to model myself off of and use my height to my advantage."
Outside the pool
Clark's life extends outside of swimming and onto the basketball court. Clark admires Rasheed Wallace, of the NBA's Detroit Pistons, and it's evident why when Clark takes to the court.
"He brings an incredible amount of passion to the sport," Clark said. "Some people think he's over the top, but he knows when to be intense, and he knows when to get down to business. I like his attitude and style."
Clark, who is 6-feet-7-inches tall, played varsity basketball but was plagued by foot injuries and forced to focus on swimming.
"Basketball is a big hobby, but I try not to play during the season," Clark said. "Before college, I considered myself as a basketball player, but now I look at myself as a swimmer."
Apart from his Olympic qualifying times, Clark is an average college student.
He is majoring in marketing, and likes to take time to just relax, away from the pressures of school and swimming.
"I love listening to music," Clark said. "That's a big passion of mine. I love hanging out with my friends. In general, sports — playing and watching, I have just always loved sports."
Looking past the trials
Clark is now training for the Big 12 Conference Championships. After that, he'll tackle the Olympic trials.
"Right now I still have a lot of work to put in," Clark said. "I think I have a lot of potential to get faster, but I still have a ways to go. If I keep getting faster at the rate I am, I think I could at least get in the top 10."
Clark described the Olympics in one word: excitement.
"I'm really excited and looking forward to that opportunity," Clark said. "Being able to qualify for the meet two summers before it happens is a nice relief, so I can just concentrate on getting faster, not making the trials."
Even after he participates in the Olympic trials, Clark won't leave MU anytime soon.
"After the trials, I'm going to see how I do," Clark said. "I know I still have to take another year of classes at least, so for the next year or so, I'll still be training with the Mizzou team."
Whether he becomes an Olympian or not, swimming plays a large role in Clark's life, and he said he'll continue to swim.
"Swimming is by far the most rewarding thing that I've ever been a part of," Clark said. "It's something I'm going to keep doing for my whole life until I'm an old man."