The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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From Start To Finish After Competing In The Olympics, Junior Connor Jaeger Returned To Ann Arbor And Dominated A By Andy Reid sixth-place finish in the 1,500-meter freestyle at the 2012 London Olympics, with a time of 14:52.99, would be a pretty difficult moment to top in the life of most swimmers. But junior distance swimmer Connor Jaeger found a way. Male Athlete Of The Year Connor Jaeger After becoming the 80th Michigan swimmer to compete in the Olympic Games, Jaeger set his sights on his junior year back in Ann Arbor. By the end of the season, Jaeger was a two-time individual national champion, winning the 500-yard freestyle (4:10.84) and the 1,650-yard freestyle (14:27.18) at the NCAA Championships, a four-time All American (500yard freestyle, 1,650-yard freestyle, 200-yard freestyle and the 800-yard freestyle relay), a three-time Big Ten individual champion (500-yard freestyle, 1,650-yard freestyle and 800- yard freestyle relay), the Big Ten Swimmer of the Year, the University of Michigan Male Athlete Of The Year, the 2013 Detroit Athletic Club Michigan Male College Athlete Of The Year and a first-team All-Big Ten selection. "When I was first appreciated in that way, it was fun and it felt nice," Jaeger said. "I kept winning things like Big Ten Swimmer Of The Year and those awards. As it went on, I was so honored to have been given these titles. I was happy with how this year went, but I don't wan to live in it for too long. I want to get geared up for the next year. "I am really surprised that the Michigan Athlete of the Year award came my way. Bottom line, they gave it to a swimmer, and that's exciting — it will give us all motivation for next year." Jaeger was the first Wolverine to win a national championship in the 1,650-yard freestyle since Chris Thompson accomplished the feat in 2001, and the first to win the 500yard freestyle since Peter Vanderkaay