KANSAS CITY, Mo. — An Olympic hopeful with ties to Lawrence will head to Tokyo this summer to represent the United States.
Michael Andrew came in first place in the 100 meter breaststroke, besting Andrew Wilson by .01 seconds Monday night.
⬇️🏊♂️🎉 We followed his story in 2016 when he lived and trained in Lawrence, KS. I talked to him before Omaha this year and he hoped to be able to make it back to Lawrence soon. https://t.co/ecKzajBtF5
— Lindsay Shively (@LindsayShively) June 15, 2021
A day before, Andrew broke the American record in the event twice during qualifying
Andrew, who began his pro career at 14 years old, also competed in the 2016 Olympics Trials and has been breaking national age-group records from the start.
41 Action News has followed Andrew's career for several years, including during the 2016 Olympic Trials when he lived and trained in Lawrence with his family.
And Andrew said he loved his time in Lawrence and still has friends and family in the area.
"There's a lot of really healthy growth and opportunity that came from Lawrence," he said.
He currently lives in California and just last month broke the U.S. Open record in the 100 meter breaststroke.
"Everything from when I was 14 has given me the best opportunity to be ready for this, so in a way, yes we've been training for this moment," Andrew said. "But what I realized is really unhealthy with a lot of athletes putting that kind of pressure on themselves is that whether you make it or not, it really doesn't matter.
"And I think that gives me a lot of peace, knowing that I can go into this trials knowing I'm more confident in my ability now than ever, because I realized it doesn't really define me, but I wanted so badly like we're working incredibly hard for it but it's one of those things that it's out of my hands now and I just need to show up and race."
