Texan Simone Manuel needed a break from swimming. Now she’s helping break American records

PARIS — Considering she took seven months off from swimming after the Tokyo Olympics, Simone Manuel couldn’t have dreamed she’d anchor a silver medal Saturday and set an American record in the process.

Let’s try that again: The Sugar Land, Texas native didn’t just go on vacation after Tokyo. She didn’t do anything.

Not so much as a Sunday stroll.

“The most boring months of my life,” as she once put it.

Manuel needed the break after a five-year run in which she became the first Black American woman to win gold in an Olympic swimming event (100-meter freestyle) at the 2016 Games; took silver in the same Olympics in the 50 free; anchored the gold-medal 4×100 medley; and won more medals in 2019 at the world championships (four golds and three silvers) than any female ever.

Going into Tokyo, though, she wasn’t winning as much. Or at all. Her times got worse. Motivation wilted.

Then in 2021, she announced a case of “overtraining syndrome.”

Burnout, in other words.

Even though she still managed to take part in a bronze-medal 4×100 freestyle relay in Tokyo, she knew she had to change. Part of that adjustment included marriage in 2022 to Denzel Franklin, a former classmate at Stanford who also played safety for the Cardinal for four years.

Since making her comeback, she’s lived and trained in Tempe, Ariz. One of her coaches, Bob Bowman, now the coach at Texas, has said she’s nearly back to normal in the pool.

Manuel’s performance on Saturday proved him a prophet. The U.S. team couldn’t overtake Australia, which turned in an Olympic record of 3:28.92, but the Americans’ time of 3:30.20 broke the national record.

Which is exactly what they planned to do.

“It was a goal of ours to break the American record and get as close to the Australians as we could,” she said.

“So we’re really happy we did that.”

Manuel conceded she was nervous about anchoring the relay. It had been a long time.

“It just feels good to be back here, honestly,” she said. “I mean, I didn’t know if I would ever be performing at this level again. Just to have the full-circle moment of being on this relay again from 2021 to now, but just in a happier and healthier place, I think it’s really special.”

And when these Olympics are over, she’s planning on taking time off again. Only this time for an overdue honeymoon.

Twitter/X: @KSherringtonDMN

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