USA Swimming News
Monday, August 8, 2022
Building Champions: Leah Smith

by Gabi Eckard//USA Swimming
Leah Smith is not new to the professional swimming spotlight.
“2022 marks my twenty-first-year swimming competitively and my eighth year on the National Team. I can say now that I have made it so much farther than my 14-year-old self in 2009 could have ever dreamed, and so I feel an intense amount of gratitude for the way my journey has unfolded.”
Smith just completed her fourth world championship and returned home with both a gold and bronze to show for it. Now at age 27, Smith continues her journey to make her 14-year-old self proud both in and out of the pool.
How has swimming impacted your life?
In 2009, while I was sitting in a meeting at my National Select Camp, the coaches told us that some of us could go on to make the National Junior Team, the National Team and even the Olympic Team - and that some of us might have careers over 10 years long. While I was somewhat in shock that that could be someone at my camp - and that it could even be me - I was also so excited at the opportunity to work away at goals like that.
Because I have had such a long journey in this sport, every year I gain so much more clarity on the things I love about it. One of the things I enjoy the most is the opportunity for growth in so many different areas. I love all of the opportunities this sport gives me, from chasing times and medals all the way to overcoming your fears and doubts.
What I learned through my heartbreak of missing the Olympic Team in 2021 and my comeback to make the World Championship Team in 2022 was invaluable, and my journey taught me so much about my team, my coaches and myself. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was looking for when I decided to keep swimming after 2021, but this past year of swimming has invigorated me, and I am excited to attack my journey to 2024 with passion and energy and a new level of gratitude for my surroundings.
What would you like to do outside of the pool in the future?
After swimming, I hope to pursue a career in advertising or marketing communications. The intersection between creativity and strategy within those fields is something that excites me and I’m looking forward to building relationships and achieving goals with a team in my professional career.
I have really enjoyed getting to see a lot of what goes on behind the scenes of marketing and advertising partnerships through my swimming career and making connections with all the people that make those things happen. I feel fortunate that swimming has allowed me to learn from many great leaders and lead teams myself, so I know being in a positive, well-led environment will always be really important to me. With the majority of my swimming career behind me, I want to welcome the challenge and transition of what’s next for me, so my goals for the next few years are to find opportunities that I can balance with swimming that bring me closer to my professional goals.
What are some of the challenges of being a professional athlete?
There are a lot of both challenges and blessings that come with being a professional athlete. First and foremost, I am so grateful that what I get to do every day is to be my best in the pool. Getting to work out every day as your job is truly a DREAM!
One challenge that is unique to swimming is that there aren’t a lot of financial guarantees in this sport that allow you to make a concrete plan beyond a few months to a year. In a lot of major sports, many athletes can sign longer multi-year contracts with their league or sponsor, which I think allows for peace of mind and a feeling of stability. In swimming, a lot of sponsor contracts are two years or less and can have a lot of clauses that could cause you to lose your contract or income at the drop of a hat. When your sport operates on an Olympic cycle, not having a lot of stability with your income can make that Olympic journey a lot more difficult.
Thankfully, I have always had the peace of mind that I can qualify for funding through USA Swimming, and I know that they are always trying to help athletes the best they can with different opportunities. The Donor Athlete Partnership Program helps me feel like I have more stability going into this Olympic cycle so that I can focus on what really matters most to me which is getting in the pool every day trying to be my best.
To learn how the USA Swimming Foundation is helping build champions like Leah, please visit https://www.usaswimming.org/foundation.
“2022 marks my twenty-first-year swimming competitively and my eighth year on the National Team. I can say now that I have made it so much farther than my 14-year-old self in 2009 could have ever dreamed, and so I feel an intense amount of gratitude for the way my journey has unfolded.”
Smith just completed her fourth world championship and returned home with both a gold and bronze to show for it. Now at age 27, Smith continues her journey to make her 14-year-old self proud both in and out of the pool.
How has swimming impacted your life?
In 2009, while I was sitting in a meeting at my National Select Camp, the coaches told us that some of us could go on to make the National Junior Team, the National Team and even the Olympic Team - and that some of us might have careers over 10 years long. While I was somewhat in shock that that could be someone at my camp - and that it could even be me - I was also so excited at the opportunity to work away at goals like that.
Because I have had such a long journey in this sport, every year I gain so much more clarity on the things I love about it. One of the things I enjoy the most is the opportunity for growth in so many different areas. I love all of the opportunities this sport gives me, from chasing times and medals all the way to overcoming your fears and doubts.
What I learned through my heartbreak of missing the Olympic Team in 2021 and my comeback to make the World Championship Team in 2022 was invaluable, and my journey taught me so much about my team, my coaches and myself. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was looking for when I decided to keep swimming after 2021, but this past year of swimming has invigorated me, and I am excited to attack my journey to 2024 with passion and energy and a new level of gratitude for my surroundings.
What would you like to do outside of the pool in the future?
After swimming, I hope to pursue a career in advertising or marketing communications. The intersection between creativity and strategy within those fields is something that excites me and I’m looking forward to building relationships and achieving goals with a team in my professional career.
I have really enjoyed getting to see a lot of what goes on behind the scenes of marketing and advertising partnerships through my swimming career and making connections with all the people that make those things happen. I feel fortunate that swimming has allowed me to learn from many great leaders and lead teams myself, so I know being in a positive, well-led environment will always be really important to me. With the majority of my swimming career behind me, I want to welcome the challenge and transition of what’s next for me, so my goals for the next few years are to find opportunities that I can balance with swimming that bring me closer to my professional goals.
What are some of the challenges of being a professional athlete?
There are a lot of both challenges and blessings that come with being a professional athlete. First and foremost, I am so grateful that what I get to do every day is to be my best in the pool. Getting to work out every day as your job is truly a DREAM!
One challenge that is unique to swimming is that there aren’t a lot of financial guarantees in this sport that allow you to make a concrete plan beyond a few months to a year. In a lot of major sports, many athletes can sign longer multi-year contracts with their league or sponsor, which I think allows for peace of mind and a feeling of stability. In swimming, a lot of sponsor contracts are two years or less and can have a lot of clauses that could cause you to lose your contract or income at the drop of a hat. When your sport operates on an Olympic cycle, not having a lot of stability with your income can make that Olympic journey a lot more difficult.
Thankfully, I have always had the peace of mind that I can qualify for funding through USA Swimming, and I know that they are always trying to help athletes the best they can with different opportunities. The Donor Athlete Partnership Program helps me feel like I have more stability going into this Olympic cycle so that I can focus on what really matters most to me which is getting in the pool every day trying to be my best.
To learn how the USA Swimming Foundation is helping build champions like Leah, please visit https://www.usaswimming.org/foundation.
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