Staff Writer
Five years ago, entering the final leg of the 400-meter individual medley finals at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, Jay Litherland, swimming in lane three, showed his toughness and drive by chasing down Ryan Lochte in the final 50 meters of the freestyle to place second and earn a spot on the team headed to the Rio Olympics.
Five weeks ago, entering the final leg of the 400 IM final at the U.S. Trials, the former Georgia Bulldog, again in lane three, found himself again having to make up a deficit of more than a second in the final 50 meters to claim second place and make the Olympic team. And just like in 2016, Litherland dug deep and delivered, passing Carson Foster, who led for more than half the race, and touching the wall in second place.
"Jay just did incredible. No one even thought he was in the race with 100 meters to go, and on TV he wasn't even in the picture. And then he did his patented rundown on the guy that was in first place for almost 75% of the race. He ran him down and all of a sudden, here he is on the Olympic team," said Jack Bauerle, Georgia's Tom Cousins Swimming and Diving Head Coach.
Five years ago, Chase Kalisz, Litherland's Georgia teammate, cradled his buddy in his arms across the lane line as they celebrated a special moment. Kalisz had won the 400 and showed that he was very much a contender for the gold in Rio. The friends that had shared so many hours in the pool together went 1-2 in the Trials and were each going to their first Olympics.
"The second time around was just crazier," Litherland said a few days after the Trials. "We train every single day together; we train super hard. Making it, we fought for getting on that team for so long, and just being able to do that again, I'm so fortunate and so grateful."
In Rio, Kalisz captured the silver medal in the 400 with a time of 4:06.75, just behind gold medalist Kosuke Hagino of Japan's 4:06.05. Litherland came in fifth with a time of 4:11.68.
Five weeks ago, Kalisz again comfortably won the 400 at the Trials to secure his spot in Tokyo while his training partner and buddy had to put on a late surge to get there. When the race was over, Kalisz wore a big smile as he swam over to give Litherland a hug — the former Bulldogs had again gone 1-2 and were going to their second Olympics, together.
"For him to make it was an achievement because there were a lot of young bucks in there coming after these guys," Bauerle said. "But Chase and Jay put them down.
"They're great training partners. Those guys really do a good job together."
Unlike five years ago, Litherland will be competing on home turf in Tokyo. His mother, Chizuko, is Japanese, and Litherland and his brothers Mick and Kevin — they're triplets who all swam for Georgia — were born in Osaka before moving to the Atlanta area. The brothers graduated from Chattahoochee High School and trained at the Dynamo Swim Club in Atlanta before coming to Georgia.
Litherland has citizenship in both the U.S. and Japan, and speaks fluent Japanese. This is a homecoming that he's been looking forward to for a long time.
"It's gonna be sweet," he said.
Litherland was beaming at the thought of returning to Japan for the first time in three years, particularly when the subject of food came up. But these aren't an ordinary Olympic Games, and because of the pandemic the athletes won't be able to explore much beyond their venues and the Olympic village.
Being in Tokyo and not being able to experience all of the things he loves about the city — the ramen and the gyoza, which are Japanese dumplings, in particular — is "definitely going to be kind of hard," he said. But once the pandemic is behind all of us, he can return to his native country any time. The Olympics, though, that's an opportunity to be savored no matter what.
Litherland, Kalisz and all of the Olympians thought they'd be in Tokyo a year ago, but then came the pandemic. Litherland said he tried to make the most out of the extra year.
"I think last year was definitely a blessing for me just because I think I really needed to reset everything," said Litherland, a nine-time All-American who wrapped up his Georgia career in 2018.
"I'm sure like a lot of people I learned to just be more patient with myself and not be so caught up with trying to do everything right, trying to train and be at my best every single day. I think it was a big reset button and I came out, definitely, a better person."
Still a college student when he went to Rio in 2016, Litherland has been a professional swimmer for the past few years. He earned the silver medal in the 400 IM at the 2019 world championships, and arrived in Tokyo as a contender for a medal, alongside Kalisz.
While his life has changed a good bit since his first Olympics, Litherland said he planned to approach his second, on home soil, as the special opportunity that it is.
"I think it's going to be the same way I approach everything, just being grateful for being in this situation, for being able to experience it again.," he said. "I think the first time around was an experience I'll never forget, and the second time around will probably be even more meaningful just because the battle that came with it. I'm super grateful to be in this spot right now."
The Olympic swimming kicks off Saturday at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre with the qualifying heats for the 400 IM, followed by the finals on Sunday.
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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Litherland 'Grateful To Be In This Spot Right Now' - University of Georgia Athletics - Georgia Bulldogs
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