Who Is Katharine Berkoff? Meet the Olympic Swimmer

Katharine Berkoff set her sights on a gold medal on the 2024 Paris Olympics. The swimmer superior to the ladies’s 100-meter backstroke, which can happen on July 30, 2024.

Who Is Katharine Berkoff?

Katharine is a local of Missoula, Montana, whose household watched her compete within the girls’s 100-meter backstroke semifinals on July 29, 2024. They wore shirts to indicate off their Montana and U.S.A pleasure as they sat within the crowd, per MontanaSports.com. She completed the semifinal race in 58.27 seconds, behind U.S.A’s Regan Smith and Australia’s Kaylee McKeown.

She was born in 2001, making her 23 on the time of her Olympic run in 2024. The athlete attended North Carolina State College and is a 5 time NCAA Champion and 30-time All-American.

In 2021, Katharine competed within the U.S. Olympic Trials, the place she ended up in fourth place. It was a dream of hers to make the Olympic crew.

“I simply determined I used to be gonna make it. And in order that was my plan,” she informed the outlet. “I used to be actually nervous going into it, and I believe somewhat too nervous, and my finals race, I took it out somewhat too quick, and my final 15 meters have been fairly vertical.” She continued, “It’s simply not the result I needed or deliberate for.”

Her Father Was an Olympian

Katharine has had a terrific position mannequin in her life all through her swimming profession — her father is four-time Olympic medalist David Berkoff. He’s recognized for smashing the world file for the 100-meter backstroke on three events.

Regardless that her dad was a famous person athlete, Katharine stated she by no means felt like she needed to dwell as much as his expectations.

“The one stress I ever felt was from myself as a result of I simply needed to do it for myself, and my dad was undoubtedly an enormous inspiration. I don’t assume I might have had these Olympic goals with out him. He performed an enormous position in my goal-setting, however it was by no means a unfavorable factor,” she informed Swimming World Magazine in March 2022. “Ever since I used to be sufficiently old to care about swimming, I made a decision I needed to make the Olympic crew. And my dad was at all times very supportive of that and informed me he knew I might do it.”

Dave additionally spoke out on not pressuring his daughter to comply with in his footsteps. Nonetheless, he’s nothing however happy with every part she has completed so far.

“She’s at all times had this dream of being an Olympian, and I’ve by no means requested her if she ever needed to try this,” he stated, per WRAL Sports activities Fan. “I by no means put the stress on her to attempt to comply with in my footsteps and the truth that that’s one thing that she needed to do, and he or she truly did it’s fairly phenomenal.”

“In my head. I used to be at all times an Olympian,” Katherine added, “so it’s not like something’s modified an excessive amount of as a result of it’s I at all times believed I might do it.”