KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A group of swimmers from the University of Tennessee is in Paris ready to compete on the world's biggest stage in the Olympic Games.
They've spent the last several weeks intensely preparing at the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center in Knoxville.
"They're really 24/7 athletes," UT associate head swimming coach Rich Murphy said. "They're going to get up at probably six o'clock, get a good breakfast, come train, refuel, more food, probably after the practice, sometimes strength and conditioning immediately following swimming."
Murphy and his team of coaches have been helping train more than a dozen athletes representing 11 different countries.
From morning until night, they have been repeating grueling workouts, re-watching practice videos and meticulously strategizing their path to gold.
"It's kind of non-stop," UT pro group member McKenna De Bever said.
De Bever, 28, will compete for Peru in the 100m backstroke and the 200m individual medley.
"Right now we're definitely focusing on more power speed racing, so we do a lot of sets where we suit up, and that's a lot of fun, because we get to race each other," De Bever said.
She has broken several Peruvian records over the span of her swimming career and credits her grandfather for her success in the water.
"Twelve years ago my grandfather went to my mom and was like, listen, she's got her Peruvian passport. Let's get her to represent Peru. There's going to be a lot of amazing opportunities, and later down the road, if she wants to, you know, go for the Olympics, she has that opportunity," De Bever said.
In 2020 she got her first opportunity to compete in the Tokyo Summer Olympics, but De Bever said competitions looked much different at the time. "There were just a lot of restrictions on what you could do, and so this time, and I'm super excited to finally have spectators in the stands and to really feel that Olympic energy," she said.
This time around De Bever will join current Vol, Joaquin Vargas, who is also representing Peru, as they go for the gold.
"This is a dream they've had since they were, you know, little guys and gals, and it's really rewarding to see the joy and excitement on their face," Murphy said.
As they prepare for the competition of a lifetime, De Bever says she's just thankful for the village of people it took to get her to this moment. "I feel really grateful, and it definitely wouldn't have happened without them," she said.