Monday, March 20, 2023
Jake Magahey Grinds to Distance Success, World Title
At 11 years old, Jake Magahey wanted to quit swimming.
“It was no longer fun for me,” said Magahey, now a junior at the University of Georgia. “I was ready to stop.”
Magahey was bored during practice, and he didn’t care much about his times or results. During a morning practice, he was swimming particularly slowly, like he didn’t want to be there.
“(My coach) questioned my commitment to the team and the sport,” he said. “He told me I was done and to go to the locker room. I didn’t want to go through that again, so I decided then to take things more seriously.”
Now, a decade since that pivotal day, Magahey can call himself a world champion. At December’s FINA (now World Aquatics) World Championships (25m) in Australia, he swam prelims for the United States’ 4x200-meter freestyle relay team, which went on to win gold and set a new world record in the finals.
“The thing I love most about swimming is racing; I just love to get in there and go against people,” he said. “I love the grind of it, which is one of the biggest reasons I swim distance events instead of sprints.
I swam the 500 a couple of times when I was 12 or 13 and I did well, so I decided to focus there. I lack explosion for sprints.”
In 2022, he earned first-team All-America honors in multiple events – finishing second in the 500-yard freestyle, fourth in the 1,650 free and 29th in the 200 free at the NCAA Championships. As a member of the 800 free relay, he and his Bulldog teammates finished as national runners-up.
Magahey capped his freshman season by winning the 500 free at 2021 NCAA Championships along with a runner-up finish in the 1650 free – earning first-team All-America status.
He holds the Georgia school records in the 1000 freestyle and as a member of the 800 freestyle relay. He also holds UGA top-five times in the 500 free, 1650 free, 200 free and as a member of the 400 free relay.
Not bad for the kid who took to the water naturally as a toddler, started summer league at 4 years old and joined Swim Atlanta at age 8 – but never considered himself to be “very good.”
“My mom swam but not competitively, and my older sister swam, which is one of the reasons I got into the sport,” Magahey said. “I played a lot of sports growing up – football and basketball among them – but I decided to stick with swimming. I saw my best opportunities there.”
At Swim Atlanta, Magahey said he did only distance training with “high volume and high intensity.” It was during his workouts that he put together his initial distance race strategy. And while he’s adjusted it over time as he’s matured and progressed, the basic premise is unchanged.
“I always take the first 50 or 100 out fast, and then I get into a race rhythm, watching what my competitors do but always swimming my own race,” he said. “I don’t want to wait until the last 50 or 100 to make my move, that’s too late for me.
“It’s a gradual build. My training allows me to stay competitive throughout and make sure I’m in the right position to move up over the last 200.”
Whether or not he makes a future Olympic team in an individual or relay event, Magahey said his bottom line is to do whatever it takes to earn a spot.
“After the (2020) Trials, I took a little break from swimming because I didn’t achieve all I wanted to and I was pretty disappointed,” he said. “That little bit of time away rejuvenated my fire for the sport. I learned that nothing can prepare you for that meet, but having been there now, I know what to expect.”
Next on his schedule are the NCAA Championships. He’s scheduled to compete in the 200 freestyle, 500 freestyle and 1650 freestyle. Magahey is coming off SEC Championships silver medals in the 500 and 1650 freestyle races and is looking to build on that success with his high-seed times in this year’s championship. Magahey is the second-seeded swimmer in the 500, in which he finished second in 2022 and won in 2021. He is also the fourth-seeded swimmer in the 1650, in which he finished just off the podium in fourth in 2022.
Each meet is just another step along a path he hopes will lead him to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
“Everything that still is to come is a stepping stone to my ultimate goal of swimming and medaling at the Olympics. I know I still have a lot of work to do to accomplish that, but last year showed me I can do it. I now know I belong.”
Add that to his recent accomplishments and he is poised and ready for what’s to come leading up to the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming.
“It was no longer fun for me,” said Magahey, now a junior at the University of Georgia. “I was ready to stop.”
Magahey was bored during practice, and he didn’t care much about his times or results. During a morning practice, he was swimming particularly slowly, like he didn’t want to be there.
“(My coach) questioned my commitment to the team and the sport,” he said. “He told me I was done and to go to the locker room. I didn’t want to go through that again, so I decided then to take things more seriously.”
Now, a decade since that pivotal day, Magahey can call himself a world champion. At December’s FINA (now World Aquatics) World Championships (25m) in Australia, he swam prelims for the United States’ 4x200-meter freestyle relay team, which went on to win gold and set a new world record in the finals.
“The thing I love most about swimming is racing; I just love to get in there and go against people,” he said. “I love the grind of it, which is one of the biggest reasons I swim distance events instead of sprints.
I swam the 500 a couple of times when I was 12 or 13 and I did well, so I decided to focus there. I lack explosion for sprints.”
In 2022, he earned first-team All-America honors in multiple events – finishing second in the 500-yard freestyle, fourth in the 1,650 free and 29th in the 200 free at the NCAA Championships. As a member of the 800 free relay, he and his Bulldog teammates finished as national runners-up.
Magahey capped his freshman season by winning the 500 free at 2021 NCAA Championships along with a runner-up finish in the 1650 free – earning first-team All-America status.
He holds the Georgia school records in the 1000 freestyle and as a member of the 800 freestyle relay. He also holds UGA top-five times in the 500 free, 1650 free, 200 free and as a member of the 400 free relay.
Not bad for the kid who took to the water naturally as a toddler, started summer league at 4 years old and joined Swim Atlanta at age 8 – but never considered himself to be “very good.”
“My mom swam but not competitively, and my older sister swam, which is one of the reasons I got into the sport,” Magahey said. “I played a lot of sports growing up – football and basketball among them – but I decided to stick with swimming. I saw my best opportunities there.”
At Swim Atlanta, Magahey said he did only distance training with “high volume and high intensity.” It was during his workouts that he put together his initial distance race strategy. And while he’s adjusted it over time as he’s matured and progressed, the basic premise is unchanged.
“I always take the first 50 or 100 out fast, and then I get into a race rhythm, watching what my competitors do but always swimming my own race,” he said. “I don’t want to wait until the last 50 or 100 to make my move, that’s too late for me.
“It’s a gradual build. My training allows me to stay competitive throughout and make sure I’m in the right position to move up over the last 200.”
Whether or not he makes a future Olympic team in an individual or relay event, Magahey said his bottom line is to do whatever it takes to earn a spot.
“After the (2020) Trials, I took a little break from swimming because I didn’t achieve all I wanted to and I was pretty disappointed,” he said. “That little bit of time away rejuvenated my fire for the sport. I learned that nothing can prepare you for that meet, but having been there now, I know what to expect.”
Next on his schedule are the NCAA Championships. He’s scheduled to compete in the 200 freestyle, 500 freestyle and 1650 freestyle. Magahey is coming off SEC Championships silver medals in the 500 and 1650 freestyle races and is looking to build on that success with his high-seed times in this year’s championship. Magahey is the second-seeded swimmer in the 500, in which he finished second in 2022 and won in 2021. He is also the fourth-seeded swimmer in the 1650, in which he finished just off the podium in fourth in 2022.
Each meet is just another step along a path he hopes will lead him to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
“Everything that still is to come is a stepping stone to my ultimate goal of swimming and medaling at the Olympics. I know I still have a lot of work to do to accomplish that, but last year showed me I can do it. I now know I belong.”
Add that to his recent accomplishments and he is poised and ready for what’s to come leading up to the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming.