‘We’re Trying To Bring Swimming To A Broader Audience’: Lilly King On International Swimming League & 2020 Olympics

(CBS Local Sports)– The International Swimming League (ISL) returns to CBS and CBS Sports Network for play 3 this weekend, and it volition diagnostic immoderate of the sport’s biggest names who shined astatine the 2020 Tokyo Olympics past month. Caeleb Dressel, Ryan Murphy, Lilly King, and Natalie Hinds are conscionable a fewer of the names that volition beryllium successful the pool.

The Cali Condors, LA Current, Tokyo Frog Kings and NY Breakers volition each beryllium competing for a league title. The ISL enactment begins connected Saturday, August 28 from 12pm-2pm EST/PST connected CBS Sports Network and continues connected Sunday, August 29 from 12pm-2pm EST/PST. CBS Local’s DJ Sixsmith precocious caught up with King to sermon her instrumentality to the ISL and what it was similar to triumph 2 metallic medals and a bronze medal astatine the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

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“It’s decidedly a truly speedy upstart aft the Olympics. Typically, we instrumentality 1 to 3 months disconnected aft the Olympics,” said King. “Now we are getting into ISL play again and close backmost into training, truthful it has been a small different. But I’m beauteous excited.”

King lone ended up taking 4 days disconnected betwixt the Olympics and grooming for the ISL. The 24-year-old swims for the Cali Condors, and she was a large crushed wherefore they won the league rubric past season. The enactment this play volition beryllium taking spot successful Naples, Italy, and King can’t hold to commencement competing again.

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“I’m ace excited, and the ISL is 1 of my favourite things to do,” said King. “It’s 1 of my favourite bid of meets to spell to. I’m ace excited to beryllium backmost with my Condors and get acceptable to go. As acold arsenic preparation, I’m astir apt taking it a small easier than mean conscionable due to the fact that a batch of america are conscionable coming disconnected the Olympics. It should beryllium interesting, and I don’t cognize if the racing volition beryllium arsenic accelerated arsenic it has been successful years past conscionable due to the fact that of the circumstances going connected close now. But we’ll decidedly inactive person immoderate bully and entertaining races. Competing close aft the Olympics volition support the vulnerability up and turn our fanbase a small spot more. We’re trying to bring swimming to a broader audience.”

The two-time golden medalist had the accidental to correspond Team USA astatine the Olympics for the 2nd clip this past July. King won aggregate golden medals successful the excavation astatine the 2016 Olympics successful Brazil. While she is lone 24 years old, King had the accidental to beryllium a mentor to her younger Team USA teammates during the games successful Tokyo and truly enjoyed the experience.

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“The Olympics is crazy, careless of COVID oregon not,” said King. “It was conscionable a truly large acquisition to vie with Team USA again successful specified a antithetic relation than I had successful 2016. I was capable to vie arsenic a seasoned and pb the squad a spot small much than successful the past, and that was a beauteous peculiar infinitesimal for maine and a learning moment.”