'In this together:' 19-year-old Olympic swimmer Claire Curzan prepares for 2024 Summer Olympics

With only six months until the start of the Summer Olympic Games in Paris, athletes from the Triangle area are training hard, hoping to compete for the gold.

Among them is Olympic silver medalist Claire Curzan, a 19-year-old Cary native who first made waves at Cardinal Gibbons High School as the most decorated female swimmer in NCHSAA history.

Curzan then took the Olympic spotlight in Tokyo in 2021 when she was still only 17.

However, despite earning a silver medal and countless accolades in the past two years, Curzan says she struggles with, of all things, confidence.

“Just being confident in my training, confident in my swimming and knowing that I am one of the best now," she said. "That’s been hard to wrap my head around. Because two years ago, I couldn't have said that."

As she works on building confidence with her sports psychologist – just one of the people helping prepare her for the intense months ahead – she says her solid foundation of loved ones and supporters in North Carolina have given her strength.

"I have such a great support system back at home," she said. "Not only within my high school, but with all my family and also my club team. Like after when I got home from the last Olympics, my neighborhood threw this big party, and it was so fun to see everyone's support."

'Pinch myself:' Preparing for second Olympics is like a dream

Ever since the Tokyo Summer Olympics, Curzan says life has been a whirlwind. She was only 16 when she first arrived in the domestic training camp – she celebrated her birthday there – and she's still processing everything that's happened since then.

"Honestly, I think I'm in the process of really taking it all in," she said. "Because I constantly have to pinch myself."

She looks back at her camera roll and still feels amazement when she sees all the photos from Hawaii and Japan.

"All of the sudden, all of these pictures from the Olympics," she said. "It was an incredible experience. I think it'll take me a couple of years to fully gain a true perspective and appreciation for everything I went through at that time, especially in my formative years."

But above all, she says she's grateful.

While she trains for the Olympic Trials in June, Curzan doesn't even know the exact dates she's preparing for. However, the uncertainty of the future helps her focus on another part of her mental strategy: Focus on the now.

“It’s all kind of about building your confidence and really setting a base," she said. "So when you do get to those big meets, you’re able to look back and see all of the feathers that you have put in your cap – and then it’s just another race, just another meet.”

Curzan trained out of the Triangle Aquatic Center in Cary, which has been selected as the training site for the U.S. Olympic swimming team next summer.

Many challenges as she works towards the 2024 Summer Olympics

Curzan doesn't have the luxury of just hunkering down and focusing on her Olympic training. Over the next few months, other competitions will take her across the globe, meaning travel will keep her busy.

She's preparing for the World Aquatics Championships, which will take place in Doha, Qatar in February. She says she'll also likely have some domestic meets around the U.S.

But she says the traveling and meets are part of the experience of growth. She'll be traveling with Kate Douglas and Jack Aikins, two other competitive swimmers at her college the University of Virginia.

"So it'll be fun that we'll be able to go as like a little pro-group together," she said. "Gain a lot of race experience."

After that?

“Come back, reset, obviously adjust back to the timezone, and then right back into training for a couple months," she said.

'In this together:' Bonding with her team as they balance tough training schedules

Imagine balancing Olympic training, world travel, changing time zones, strict sleep cycles and attending college classes – that's Curzan's daily life. And she says it's wonderful.

“It’s been wonderful, I’m working harder than ever. I’m so sore all the time," she said.

She says she feels privileged to get to sleep in until 6:30 a.m. during training, when some other athletes wake up in the cold dark of 3 a.m.

However, she does acknowledge it's been a tough transition.

"You really have to get used to working through being sore and then also learning recovery methods – and how to fit those into your schedule," she said. "I think that's been the biggest challenge for me."

The bright side, she says, is it has helped improve her time management, her focus on staying in the moment and tackling one challenge at a time.

"You also bond better with your teammates," she said. "Because it's like: We're all in this together."

She says it's also been a hard adjustment to take on a more hectic schedule while also balancing college classes.

"But I've also been happy doing it because I'm surrounded by so many people that are doing it with me," she said. "It's fun. Because you're working towards another Olympics."