First of all, thank you so much for this amazing award. It is truly an honor and I am so grateful to Connecticut Swimming for its consideration. Thank you to Tim Wise, whose guidance has been invaluable to my success over the past two years. Also, thank you to all the coaches and swimmers at OMNI, who have provided me with support and friendship. And finally, thank you to all of you swimmers out there, with whom it has been such a pleasure to compete.

Swimming has always been a sport very close to my heart. At four years old my parents made me learn to swim for safety’s sake, and ever since I have been hooked. Swimming has been much more than a sport for me – it was and is the place where I have met my best friends and girlfriend, it is an outlet for my pent-up energy, and it has and always will be a place of solace and peace. Perhaps it is because I am from a state where it is sunny over 300 days a year and summer temperatures usually reach above 110 degrees, but this sport has always been my favorite of the many I have played and is one that has had tremendous lasting effects on my life.

It is funny how fast life moves. I vividly remember my 14 year-old self struggling to get out of bed for 5 AM morning practice. Between the moment when I had first timidly jumped in the pool as a youngster and that moment as I loudly complained to my parents that it was too dark outside to swim, so much had changed in my life because of swimming. I had become a young teenager, in the process choosing swimming as my primary sport and making it my goal to improve and excel. While the other kids in my class were peacefully sleeping in the morning, or playing baseball in the afternoons, I was swimming laps with my club team.

At that age, swimming was still incredibly fun. I had a great time practicing with and competing against my friends. But as we all know, there comes a point when life becomes more serious and it is easy to lose sight of why you enjoy a sport. When I was 16 and a sophomore in high school, I hit a period in my life where I hated swimming. There was little my parents could do to make me practice and the fun, it seemed, had completely left the sport. I struggled constantly that year to find a reason to continue. The prospect of hard practices, cold mornings, and no short-term success all contributed to major self-doubt and disgust with my situation. But this dark period in my life didn’t just confine itself to swimming. I struggled in school and in my personal interactions with friends and family until it all reached a breaking point that summer.

A wise man once said, "It’s not whether you get knocked down, but whether you get up." Even though Vince Lombardi was a football coach, I find his words very applicable to my situation. After so much distress and unhappiness with the sport, something changed. Whether it was switching club teams, participating in an immersion trip to Mexico with several of my peers, or just growing up a bit, I felt a renewed sense of commitment and inspiration at the outset of junior year. I was infinitely happier at practice. I worked harder and pushed myself to reach my full potential. With the help of my parents, brothers, and coaches, I was able to set goals that actually seemed attainable, making working for them so much more realistic. That year saw a drastic improvement in my attitude, work ethic, and accomplishments. I still struggled at times to make myself go to morning practice, or to lift weights even when all I wanted to do was go hang out with friends, but my renewed focus and ability to make swimming fun strengthened my resolve and allowed me to accomplish the goals I had set for myself at the beginning of the year. Similarly, my senior year was a time during which swimming was fun again and I swam faster than even I could have imagined.

Many people have asked me why I chose to go to Yale, and I always have a number of responses, but the real reason is that it was one of the only places I saw that would allow me to continue to love swimming. Throughout my two years there, I have found an amazing group of lifelong friends and incredibly committed coaches who have pushed me to swim my best, but also to enjoy it along the way. I truly believe that I have been able to achieve my goals and accomplish so much because I have been able to keep loving the sport. Although the practices may be hard sometimes (or with Tim, most of the time), and the mornings much, much colder than I have ever found in Arizona, I am constantly reminded of how much I enjoy swimming.

I guess if there is one lesson to be learned from all my years as a swimmer, it is that swimming is just a sport. It is should be fun, and provide the athlete with happiness and fulfillment. Everyone goes through times questioning and doubt, but the key to rising above it is to find the fun in what you are doing. We became swimmers because it gave us such tremendous happiness, and never losing sight of that is key to excelling. Getting up for early practice on Saturday morning or going to a long meet on a cold and rainy weekend may not be the most pleasant experiences, but if you never forget why you are swimming, then you can make it through any hardship. Even if you look beyond the realm of swimming, to school or other activities, happiness should be central. I’m not saying times won’t be tough, because they will. But as Coach Lombardi said, it’s the resilience after a hardship that truly matters.

As you all continue to get older, life will inevitably become more serious. Swimming will start to become very competitive and many will lose sight of the enjoyment in the sport. It is absolutely crucial that each and every one of you never forgets why you swim. I promise you that if you always seek out the fun in swimming, you will succeed and enjoy it along the way. Even when I was down in Brazil this summer swimming at the Pan-American Games, I tried to have as much fun as possible. Even though there was tremendous pressure riding on every swim, taking the situation too seriously would have negatively affected my ability to perform. After all, swimming is just a sport. Life goes on whether one wins or loses, and even if you get last in an event, if you are having fun doing it and trying your best, you have found out what swimming is all about – happiness.

Thank you very much.

Alex Righi