Guest Column: Making an Olympic-sized splash

GUEST COLUMNIST: Jenna Santelli

"The Olympics remain the most compelling search for excellence that exists in sport, and maybe in life itself," said former Olympic swimmer from Australia Dawn Fraser. To be an Olympian, I feel, is probably one of the biggest accomplishments and proudest moments in someone’s life. I could not imagine something as great as being able to represent your country at the Olympics.

All athletes at one time or another have dreamed of going to the Olympics. Unfortunately, that dream fizzles quickly for most of us after we realize that we just aren’t good enough. For the lucky few that do get to see that dream, it is the greatest accomplishment. Oregon State swimmer Saori Haruguchi is one of these lucky few.

Some athletes just have winning in their blood, and she is one of those athletes. In this year alone, she was the NCAA Champion in the 200 butterfly and now she is the Olympic Trial Champion for Japan in 400 individual medley. You would never guess that from talking with Haruguchi because she sees herself as a normal and fun person. Her modest attitude and her consistent love for swimming is what makes her a winner, never mind all the records, all the trophies and hopefully a medal in Beijing.

She wasted no time in making the Olympic team by winning the 400 IM and getting the Olympic standard time on the first day of competition. According to Swimming World Magazine, she told reporters, "My strong points are butterfly and backstroke, so I tried to go out fast." Obviously going out fast for Haruguchi, or as I called her before, "The Japanese Sensation," worked well because she touched the wall first with a time of 4:38.94.

While she placed third in the 200 free, barely missing the cut, she did show her rocking personality after the finish. Her face turned to the scoreboard with one arm raised slightly out of the water in "L" position and a striking little "I am tired" smile after her swim said it all. She is having so much fun swimming back in Japan and at these trials. Haruguchi was seated sixth going into finals, and she managed to shave off two seconds in finals to make a competitive push for that second place spot. Not only is she smiling and having a good ol’ time, but also she is improving in every race – continuing her winning ways.

She is not the first OSU swimmer to make a splash at the trials and then head to the Olympics for her country. The first to strike this feat was Birte Stevens. This former Oregon State swimmer helped to put OSU on the swimming map as a top-notch program. She qualified for Athens four years ago in the 200 breaststroke where she was leading after a 100. Her lead diminished and she ended up placing 6th overall.

The Japanese Sensation and Stevens have both helped to turn this program into a household name by branding themselves as winners. What makes them true winners are their dominating performances at big meets, awesome attitudes and continuous hard work in the classroom.

Since starting her tenure at Oregon State as a freshman, Haruguchi has had an immediate impact. She shed light on the pool and encouraged the people around her to have more fun, work harder and continue the hard work. Haruguchi could take any situation and turn it into a joke. She is probably one of the funniest people I have ever met. She is like a flower in the sense that she can brighten any gloomy or bad day by making it more beautiful and fun. She is a breath of fresh air.

While at Oregon State, Haruguchi helped to end the Beavers’ 2006-07 season in the top 25. In that time, the Beavers qualified their first relay team in the history of Oregon State swimming. She also helped coach Liebowitz carry his first award at the Benny’s, where he was voted Coach of the Year in women’s sports. All of these accomplishments just keep adding to her already plentiful winning resume.

But more than anything, Haruguchi brings love, fun and hard work to every situation in her life. She lives to have fun and work hard and the winning just comes naturally.

Perhaps her normal status will be removed and her status as being a winner will move in. Perhaps she could end up being one of the most decorative and accomplished athletes that Oregon State has ever seen. Perhaps her winning ways will lead to a medal in Beijing.