“Took Care of It”: Torri Huske Credits Surprising Figure for Paris Olympics Masterclass

Oct 5, 2024 | 3:24 PM EDT

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Torri Huske's Paris triumph: Is this the greatest Olympic comeback story we've seen in years?

Torri Huske walked away from the City of Light with 5 Olympic medals – 3 golds and 2 silvers. If anything, she couldn’t have asked for a better redemption arch. The stark difference between her first and second Olympic berth is incredible. In Tokyo, the swimmer left with 1 silver in the 4x100m. But they couldn’t even podium in the 4x100m mixed medley relay, placing fifth. While the swimming community didn’t expect it, the 21-year-old turned things around in Paris.

In conversation with 3x Olympian Elizabeth Beisel and US National Team Director of Performance Matt Barbini on the Kick Set Podcast, the swimmer goes over her experience in the French Capital. Barbini asked her to elaborate on how she felt about the relay events with her incredible teammates. Flashing her pearly whites, the Olympian confessed, “Reagan obviously took it out like so fast, and Lily held on, and Gretchen had one of the fastest splits, if not the fastest split ever in the 100 fly that relay.”

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The quartet of Torri Huske, Regan Smith, Gretchen Walsh, and Lilly King touched the wall in a new World Record-breaking time of 3:49:63. However, Walsh’s blistering 55.03 in the butterfly leg was a little over a second faster than Kelsi Dahlia’s split of 56.16 from the previous world record. “So I was like they could have probably put almost anyone on, and they would have been fine, just because they took care of it for me,” the 21-year-old stated.

With this, Walsh brought Team USA from 2nd to first position, setting the stage for Huske’s pristine anchor leg finish. However, the Olympian doesn’t want to take the credit for the win. “Honestly, I feel like I didn’t even have to do anything. I remember like diving in, and beforehand, I thought to myself like, ‘I would have to mess up so bad to lose this for them.’ But what was it like for her to contest in the relay events at París La Défense Arena?

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Torri Huske's Paris triumph: Is this the greatest Olympic comeback story we've seen in years?

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Torri Huske stated how relays are fun. However, she reveals how this was a new experience for her. “This was my first time, I think, anchoring on a USA relay, probably.” The 21-year-old clarified how she’s done it at Short Course Worlds or other meets but never in the Olympic pool. “So, that was definitely really nerve-wracking,” she admitted. The swimmer mentioned how, before diving in for the mixed medley relay, she gave herself a pep talk.

“I was just like, ‘I can’t lose it for them like I’m not going to lose.’ Torri Huske, Ryan Murphy, Gretchen Walsh, and Nic Fink set a new World Record in the mixed 4x100m medley relay with 3:37:43 seconds on the clock. The 21-year-old anchored the team to a golden victory with a blistering split of 51.88 seconds. What made the difference? “I was just like extremely dialed in like I felt like nothing was going to come between me and that, and they just set me up really well for that,” the swimmer added. However, a certain someone made this triumphant return to the top possible. Who was it?

Torri Huske credits Greg Meehan for her dreamy Parisian stint

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The 21-year-old felt her world had fallen apart at the 2023 World Championships. “I almost false-started. I kind of just fell in, and then I freaked out and completely abandoned my race plan because I just wasn’t thinking, and I was freaking out in the beginning”. But as traumatic as this experience was, it felt like this would have been the norm for her.

But things weren’t the same when Torri Huske stepped into the French capital. Her coach, Greg Meehan, helped her navigate through those difficult times. He believed that a few adjustments in her training regime could prepare her for anything while she was in the Olympic pool. And the swimmer seems to agree too.

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“I’ve just appreciated everything that he’s done for me, and I feel like it’s kind of been a tough past year for the both of us or few years,” she confessed. Barbini added that he was standing next to the coach when Huske’s name popped up on the screen. He described how watching his tutee clinch a gold was overwhelming for Meehan. “It was the fastest I’ve ever seen someone start crying, like it was instantaneous, just like the overflow of emotion.”

Torri Huske previously experienced slow starts in relay events. But none of that came through at the 2024 Paris Olympics. All she needed was a little guidance from her coach and a surmountable amount of support from her teammates. Redemption Arc? Check. Better composure at meets? Check. Confidence? Check. The swimmer definitely proved her mettle at the París La Défense Arena, and we can’t wait to see what she does next!

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