Dana Vollmer, who earned a medal of every color in Rio 17 months after childbirth, said she will “most likely not” swim at the U.S. Championships in late July as she works her way back from her second pregnancy.
“I’ve taken a step back from intense pool training and have been focused on strength and retraining movement patterns that I know will improve my overall health and my strength in the water,” was posted on the seven-time Olympic medalist’s social media on Saturday.
If Vollmer misses nationals in Irvine, Calif., she can not qualify for the next two major international meets -- the Pan Pacific Championships in Tokyo in August and the 2019 World Championships in South Korea.
“It’s unfortunate that next years [sic] World Championship team is selected this summer as I expect my racing to be in full swing again by then, but I am confident in my plan to be the best at 2020!” was posted on Vollmer’s social media.
Vollmer, 30, has raced in one meet since having her second child, son Ryker, on July 4. That was in Texas in January. The 2012 Olympic 100m butterfly champion considered entering meets in Mesa, Ariz., and Santa Clara, Calif., this spring but prioritized exacting her training regimen as a mother of two boys aged 3 and younger.
Come 2020, Vollmer will be older than any previous U.S. Olympic female swimmer except Dara Torres. Torres became the oldest in 2000 (when Vollmer was the youngest swimmer at trials at age 12, collecting autographs), then shattered her age record in 2008, earning three silver medals at age 41 with a 2-year-old daughter.
In Vollmer’s absence, the top U.S. female butterflier has been Kelsi Dahlia, who took 100m fly bronze at the 2017 Worlds. But everyone is chasing Swede Sarah Sjöström, the Olympic and world champion and world-record holder who has the four fastest times in the world this year.
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