Wednesday, September 22, 2021
Swimming Successes Finish Second Behind Family Bond and Culture for Juli Arzave
In San Diego, California, the Arzave household is home to four members who have always prioritized each other and their heritage over everything else.
Maria-Luisa and Julio, the Arzave parents who immigrated to San Diego from Mexico, made sure these aspects of life would be a focal point for their two daughters, Juli and Melissa. Between family dinners, Sunday morning breakfast burritos, celebrating Mexican holidays and more, the Arzave family has always been a tight-knit group.
“I grew up in a very Mexican and Latino community and home, so it has been really amazing to be to celebrate that culture and that heritage,” Juli said. “I also grew up very Americanized because of my school and my swimming as well, so it has been a lot of fun to be able to live a dual life with both the Mexican and American culture.”
This close familial bond is what drew Juli into swimming as well – a decision that ultimately led her to elongated success in the pool and in open water swimming.
“My sister really wanted to swim, and I always wanted to be like my sister, so I joined right alongside of her,” Juli said, claiming that she and her sister Melissa have been “two peas in a pod” despite the seven-and-a-half-year age difference between them.
Since joining the sport next to her sister, Juli has risen the ranks of USA Swimming, going from club swimmer to camp attendee, to National Junior Team athlete and now, USA Swimming Open Water National Team member.
The South Bay Aquatics product, now entering her third year as a student-athlete at UC-San Diego, took what some could consider as an unconventional path to swimming and to her National Team ranks. She joined the sport at nine years old and quickly turned her attention to open water swimming before the challenges of the sport were quickly presented to her.
“Growing up in San Diego, I have always been around the beach. We have a few local rough waters as well,” she said. “I swam the La Jolla Cove Rough Water competition and got pulled by my foot, and I got out and I threw up and looked at my mom and told her I was never doing this again.”
A year later, she picked up open water swimming again and she never looked back.
“I was still new to the national stage at that time, so [making the] National Team was still a dream of mine and not a foreseeable goal at the time,” she explained. “Once I went to [2019] Open Water Nationals in Miami and surprisingly made the National Junior Team then, it was like, wow, this could really be something.”
Not only was Juli making waves with her times and finishes, but she was doing so in the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion field as well. In 2017, Juli was presented an opportunity to merge her culture and background with her passion for swimming when she was offered to be a DEI athlete rep for San Diego-Imperial Swimming, Juli jumped at the opportunity, and has been working to make the sport more inclusive since then.
“Growing up and going to national meets, I didn’t really see a lot of people who looked like myself,” she said. “I really hope that in the future, USA Swimming can continue to become more inclusive and diverse and make every young swimmer feel included on the pool deck.”
As her impact both in and out of the pool continued to spread, she continued to fall back on the message her family has instilled in her: Enjoy the moment.
“They have always made sure that I’m having fun in the water, and they always make sure that I focus on my attitude and my love for the sport rather than my achievements,” Juli said.
The Arzave family. From left-to-right: Juli, Maria-Luisa, Melissa and Julio
She continued to have fun and make strides in the water until the COVID-19 pandemic struck the U.S., cancelling Juli’s first experience competing in the NCAA Division II Championships in the middle of the meet.
“Immediately our coach told us to go home and go to our families,” she said. “But being able to stay with my family, I was very grateful for that. There was a lot more stability and being able to have my family support through the pandemic was something that I’ll always be grateful for.”
As competition opportunities slowly returned across the country, Juli’s career has continued to soar, seeing her take the stage at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming, numerous open water competitions and more.
One of her more recent standout moments came at the 2021 Open Water National Championships, when she took to the Fort Myers Beach waters in the 10K against some of the nation’s best swimmers; including names like Haley Anderson, Katie Grimes, Bella Sims, Erica Sullivan and Ashley Twichell – all of whom would go on to compete at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 a few months later.
“Being in that lineup and being in that ready room was really nerve wracking,” she said. “Getting in and swimming next to these great, amazing athletes, and being able to kind of stay with them a little bit was an amazing experience.”
With 2021 Open Water National Team implications on the line, Arzave came into the 10K competition knowing that she could finally achieve her National Team dream that once seemed like an out-of-the-picture thought.
As the race carried on, she started counting individuals in front of her in attempts to see if she would place high enough to earn her first National Team selection. Ultimately, the two-hour race saw her finish seventh, earning her place on the National Team roster.
“It was surreal,” Juli said of making the team. “To this day, I see my name on the roster and ask if that is really true. It has been an amazing experience these past few months.”
On top of her climb through the USA Swimming athlete ranks, she continued to excel in the DEI space, eventually becoming the DEI athlete rep for USA Swimming’s Athletes’ Executive Committee.
“I first joined the DEI committee because that was the number one thing that I felt most connected to, with the way that I grew up and with my family’s background,” Juli said. “Now, to be a part of the western zone DEI committee and now to be in the AEC DEI committee, my goal is to show athletes that feel marginalized that they have a spot and that they feel included in swimming.”
Through all the hats she has worn in the sport, Juli continues to tie everything she has done in her swimming career back to her family.
“They are the most important people in my life,” Juli said. “I’m very lucky and grateful that I grew up with such a close-knit family. It’s been really, really nice to have such a supportive family that, no matter what happens in or out of the pool, I know that they will always be there for me.”
Maria-Luisa and Julio, the Arzave parents who immigrated to San Diego from Mexico, made sure these aspects of life would be a focal point for their two daughters, Juli and Melissa. Between family dinners, Sunday morning breakfast burritos, celebrating Mexican holidays and more, the Arzave family has always been a tight-knit group.
“I grew up in a very Mexican and Latino community and home, so it has been really amazing to be to celebrate that culture and that heritage,” Juli said. “I also grew up very Americanized because of my school and my swimming as well, so it has been a lot of fun to be able to live a dual life with both the Mexican and American culture.”
This close familial bond is what drew Juli into swimming as well – a decision that ultimately led her to elongated success in the pool and in open water swimming.
“My sister really wanted to swim, and I always wanted to be like my sister, so I joined right alongside of her,” Juli said, claiming that she and her sister Melissa have been “two peas in a pod” despite the seven-and-a-half-year age difference between them.
Since joining the sport next to her sister, Juli has risen the ranks of USA Swimming, going from club swimmer to camp attendee, to National Junior Team athlete and now, USA Swimming Open Water National Team member.
The South Bay Aquatics product, now entering her third year as a student-athlete at UC-San Diego, took what some could consider as an unconventional path to swimming and to her National Team ranks. She joined the sport at nine years old and quickly turned her attention to open water swimming before the challenges of the sport were quickly presented to her.
“Growing up in San Diego, I have always been around the beach. We have a few local rough waters as well,” she said. “I swam the La Jolla Cove Rough Water competition and got pulled by my foot, and I got out and I threw up and looked at my mom and told her I was never doing this again.”
A year later, she picked up open water swimming again and she never looked back.
“I was still new to the national stage at that time, so [making the] National Team was still a dream of mine and not a foreseeable goal at the time,” she explained. “Once I went to [2019] Open Water Nationals in Miami and surprisingly made the National Junior Team then, it was like, wow, this could really be something.”
Not only was Juli making waves with her times and finishes, but she was doing so in the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion field as well. In 2017, Juli was presented an opportunity to merge her culture and background with her passion for swimming when she was offered to be a DEI athlete rep for San Diego-Imperial Swimming, Juli jumped at the opportunity, and has been working to make the sport more inclusive since then.
“Growing up and going to national meets, I didn’t really see a lot of people who looked like myself,” she said. “I really hope that in the future, USA Swimming can continue to become more inclusive and diverse and make every young swimmer feel included on the pool deck.”
As her impact both in and out of the pool continued to spread, she continued to fall back on the message her family has instilled in her: Enjoy the moment.
“They have always made sure that I’m having fun in the water, and they always make sure that I focus on my attitude and my love for the sport rather than my achievements,” Juli said.
The Arzave family. From left-to-right: Juli, Maria-Luisa, Melissa and Julio
She continued to have fun and make strides in the water until the COVID-19 pandemic struck the U.S., cancelling Juli’s first experience competing in the NCAA Division II Championships in the middle of the meet.
“Immediately our coach told us to go home and go to our families,” she said. “But being able to stay with my family, I was very grateful for that. There was a lot more stability and being able to have my family support through the pandemic was something that I’ll always be grateful for.”
As competition opportunities slowly returned across the country, Juli’s career has continued to soar, seeing her take the stage at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming, numerous open water competitions and more.
One of her more recent standout moments came at the 2021 Open Water National Championships, when she took to the Fort Myers Beach waters in the 10K against some of the nation’s best swimmers; including names like Haley Anderson, Katie Grimes, Bella Sims, Erica Sullivan and Ashley Twichell – all of whom would go on to compete at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 a few months later.
“Being in that lineup and being in that ready room was really nerve wracking,” she said. “Getting in and swimming next to these great, amazing athletes, and being able to kind of stay with them a little bit was an amazing experience.”
With 2021 Open Water National Team implications on the line, Arzave came into the 10K competition knowing that she could finally achieve her National Team dream that once seemed like an out-of-the-picture thought.
As the race carried on, she started counting individuals in front of her in attempts to see if she would place high enough to earn her first National Team selection. Ultimately, the two-hour race saw her finish seventh, earning her place on the National Team roster.
“It was surreal,” Juli said of making the team. “To this day, I see my name on the roster and ask if that is really true. It has been an amazing experience these past few months.”
On top of her climb through the USA Swimming athlete ranks, she continued to excel in the DEI space, eventually becoming the DEI athlete rep for USA Swimming’s Athletes’ Executive Committee.
“I first joined the DEI committee because that was the number one thing that I felt most connected to, with the way that I grew up and with my family’s background,” Juli said. “Now, to be a part of the western zone DEI committee and now to be in the AEC DEI committee, my goal is to show athletes that feel marginalized that they have a spot and that they feel included in swimming.”
Through all the hats she has worn in the sport, Juli continues to tie everything she has done in her swimming career back to her family.
“They are the most important people in my life,” Juli said. “I’m very lucky and grateful that I grew up with such a close-knit family. It’s been really, really nice to have such a supportive family that, no matter what happens in or out of the pool, I know that they will always be there for me.”