The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1523120
JULY/AUGUST 2024 ■ 43 I 2023-24 YEAR IN REVIEW ATHLETES OF THE YEAR FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR MOTIVATED REASONING A Setback Propels Standout Swimmer Katharine Berkoff To Olympian Heights BY MATT HERB t ended atop a podium at the NCAA Championships, but in some ways, Katharine Berkoff's final season at NC State began nearly three years earlier with a moment of despair. An aspiring Olympic swimmer, Berkoff had finished fourth in the 100-meter backstroke event at the U.S. Trials and missed out on the Tokyo Games. It was a devastating blow, one that took months to put behind her. Disappointed by her showing, and later waylaid by an illness, Berkoff struggled through the 2022-23 season at NC State. That campaign ended in a second-place finish at the NCAA Championships in the 100-yard backstroke, an event she had won the previous two years. All the while, though, Berkoff was re- kindling her competitive spirit. The long- term impact of her showing at the trials for the 2020 Summer Games had been, if anything, motivational. Heading into her fifth and final season, she was feeling healthy again, practicing well and was in a better frame of mind than at any point in her career. The proof of her rebound was in the results. In February, she captured the ACC's 100-yard backstroke title for the fifth time, becoming the first woman in league history to win the same event five consecutive seasons. A month later, she reclaimed the NCAA championship in the 100 backstroke, this time finishing in an NC State-record 48.55 seconds. Berkoff was also an All-American in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle events, and she earned similar honors as part of the Wolfpack's 200 freestyle relay and 400 medley relay teams. She ended her career with five national championships and 30 All-America citations, a body of work that puts her firmly in the pantheon of NC State's all-time greatest swimmers. And that was just the beginning. Af- ter wrapping up her collegiate career in March, Berkoff transitioned to the long- course season in anticipation of the U.S. Olympic Trials in June. That went beau- tifully, too. At the trials, she finished her 100-meter backstroke semifinal in 57.83 seconds, the fourth-fastest time in the event's history. Then in the final, she fin- ished in 57.91 to place second. It took a world-record time of 57.13 by Regan Smith to surpass her, and now both swimmers will head to Paris for the Olympics. In the wake of her performance in Indi- anapolis, Berkoff couldn't help but remi- nisce about the disappointment that had set everything in motion. "Three years ago, not making it, as horrible as it was at the time, I think it was the best thing that could have happened to me and my career in the long run. It just lit a fire under me that wouldn't have otherwise been there," she told reporters. "The motivation I've had for the past three years has been huge." Berkoff is the daughter of an Olympian. Her father, David Berkoff, competed in the 1988 and '92 Games, winning four medals, including a pair of golds as part of 4x100 medley relay teams. The elder Berkoff didn't talk often about his swim- ming accomplishments when Katha- rine was growing up; much of what she learned about his career came from oth- ers, not from her father. Nevertheless, the Missoula, Mont., native was inspired by his success and began working toward her own Olympic goals. Now, after a history-making five-year career in Raleigh, she's eager to see what she can accomplish at the sport's high- est level. The indoor swimming events at the upcoming Summer Games will take place July 27-Aug. 4 in the Paris suburb of Nanterre. "It's been a dream of mine for so long to go to the Olympics," Berkoff said. "I can't believe that it's finally here. I'm just so grateful. It's such a big relief. It's an amazing feeling. "I've put so much pressure on my- self, and I remember the feeling last time, seeing the scoreboard and get- ting fourth. I was really scared of that happening again, so being second was just a huge relief." The Olympic field in the 100-meter backstroke will be strong, with Aus- tralia's Kaylee McKeown, the previous world record holder, joining Smith and Berkoff. At the U.S. Trials, Smith said she was motivated in the final by Berkoff's performance in the semis. It's a reciprocal relationship, though, and Berkoff draws inspiration from her fellow American. "If you're second, you don't want to be second forever," she said. "It's always extra motivation. She makes me better. Seeing her do that is very motivational for me." ■ Berkoff won her third NCAA 100-yard backstroke championship in March, and three months later she earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic team. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS