I’ve always wanted to swim professionally, but I never had access to proper training. I grew up by the sea and was an excellent swimmer as a kid, but I never took formal lessons. Now, at 20.5 years old, I finally have access to the resources and training facilities.
Is it still possible to start from scratch and become a professional swimmer? My ultimate goal would be to compete at a national level, but even competing at a club level would be a great achievement for me. I know that most professional swimmers start very young, but I feel like I have a natural talent and a strong passion for the sport.
Is there any realistic chance for me to reach a high level if I train seriously? What would be the best path to take at this point? Any advice is appreciated!
I think this is something that’s been discussed a lot in this subreddit.
What do you mean by swimming professionally? You mean swimming in competitions and trying to push yourself for the best result? or by professionally you mean swim in the olympics and making a career and a income out of it? If it’s the latter im sorry but the odds are REALLY low.
Not saying you can’t, but remember that you’ll probably have to compete against x amount of people that’s been consistently training for what 6,7 years before you?
Not saying you can’t compete and be the best at a certain category, but do take what I said in mind.
Also, tall physique is a great advantage for swimming but im not sure about bodybuilding. It’s something that has been talked in the sub and it’s not an ideal slim body type for the water
A professional swimmer is one that is paid to swim. For this to happen you need to be a world ranked champion and have name recognition. This takes a very long time to happen. Your body will approach its peak physical potential in 3-5 years, and after that it will become increasingly difficult to improve or maintain your speed. Not impossible, but more difficult. So to answer your question, with your current work ethic and coaching, can you become an elite swimmer and champion in 3-5 years while starting at a severe disadvantage?
It’s not “impossible” but only because crazy shit happens. But it is impossible. Sorry.
Oh definitely!!! There are millions and millions of dollars to be made in swimming. We all would be millionaires if we just applied ourselves!
In the US, with the exception of some extremely rare cases, there are no professional swimmers. No one makes any significant money in swimming. Two ways I can think of to make any real money in swimming:
You create a USA swim team that everyone wants to join. Typically this is done by coaching multiple Gold Medal Olympians and you can then charge parents boatloads of money. If money is your goal, you will need to think quantity and not quality after establishing your name as an elite coach.
You create a swim product line that everyone wants to purchase (speedo, TYR, Arena, Mizuno, etc……). If you are lucky you will break even . If you are really lucky you will make money.
Olympic/Senior Elite- most swimmers start at 8-12. There might be some outliers at 14-15, but that’s rare. So unfortunately no, being a “professional swimmer” in terms of that regard won’t happen.
Of course the options are also to go into Masters Swimming, build a brand around yourself, but that’s not truly professional. That’s still more amateur, especially when Masters usually doesn’t give prize money. Even some of the best Masters swimmers in the world, like Laura Val doesn’t quite make money from endorsements. (She is retired from her job and was a former nurse) I think Allison Zamanian has some sponsors, but her primary income is her day job. Some Olympians still end up leaving the sport for a 9-5 because the pay to be a software engineer (Josh Prenot) is more lucrative. I’m trying not to name ex-US National teamers for Masters. (And if yall never heard of them- my point exactly on Masters swimmers)
The other method really is “professional” swimmer, meaning, you’re doing something on swimming related on the 9-5. Like Fares Ksebati who owns MySwimPro, a swimming app. You won’t actually be directly making money off performances in the pool or open water, but off professional services in the swimming realm. Or create your own swimwear brand like Jolyn Clothing did. Or SBR Sports with their hygiene products. It’ll be a different vertical than winning medals at Worlds or the Olympics.
Aim for the moon… at least if you miss you will be among the stars
Is there any realistic chance for me to reach a high level if I train seriously?
No clue, what country are you, maybe.
I am also a bodybuilder and have a tall physique.
bodybuilders dont typically fair well in competitive swimming. most late bloomers come from other high level sports with massive amounts of cardio, agility, etc.
Is it too late to learn how to swim properly? No.
Can you compete with people who started training at 7 yrs old? No.
I know someone who learned how to swim in his 30s. After a while he can swim pretty well in all 4 strokes.
as a former 2016 trials qualifier, it’s doable to compete at U.S open and what not. however there are 15/16 year olds already there. Unless you can market yourself incredibly and turn it into a business you will never be able to sustain a career in professional swimming by being a national level competitor. i’ve thought about returning to the pool after 5 years and doing mastered cuz i swam a 58 100 yard br w 5 days of training, but even i know the path to a professional swimmer requires top finishes at those meets or like i said a business that utilizes your results.
It takes 10 years of training to achieve peak performance in a sport. So if you’re ralkung Olympics, you’d be 30, so probably too late. If you just want to compete, masters is an option. There isn’t such a thing as a professional swimmer, it’s essentially an amateur sport. Elite level get endorsements etc and lottery funding, but you need to be top level to get that.
