Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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92 MARCH 2025 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY TODD D. BURLAGE I t looked like a mosh pit." That's the way Notre Dame head wo m e n 's sw i m m i n g c o a c h C h r i s Lindauer described the historic mo- ment from his team's Tim Welsh Classic Jan. 25. Because that's what the poolside scene looked like after Irish freshman Carli Cronk won the 400 individual medley in 4:07.63 and, in the process, broke a Notre Dame program record that had stood since 2014. "The excitement is hard to describe, the celebration between her teammates, the coaches and the support staff," Lindauer recalled. "It was an amazing achievement." Talk about good company. The previ- ous Notre Dame 400 individual medley record was set 11 years ago by Emma Reaney: a 2014 NCAA champion in the 200 breaststroke, a 14-time Big East champion, and one of the most-deco- rated Notre Dame swimmers in program history. "I don't know if we saw that record coming for Carli, shaving four seconds off of her best time," Lindauer said of Cronk's effort. "But we also knew it was time. It was time for her. It was time for our program. Certainly an awesome ac- complishment to break a school record that had stood for so long." Adding to Cronk's school record and remarkable rookie season is that she's making waves in the pool and gain- ing notoriety on the podium as a deaf competitor. Disability? Don't tell Cronk, who through sign language, lipreading and clear speech communicates with her coaches, teammates and professors just fine. A four-time Scholastic High School All-American, Cronk is already work- ing toward a difficult business analytics degree. "I do not believe there is much, if anything at all, that my hearing loss can limit," Cronk said in an interview via email. "I expend a lot of energy focusing on communicating and understanding. I also have amazing friends who help me in situations when they know I'll be challenged, both in and out of the pool." B e c a u s e o f C ro n k 's d i s a b i l i t y, Lindauer wasn't exactly sure what to expect when he began recruiting her out of Churchill High School in San Antonio. "It's a unique situation. This is a first for me," said Lindauer, adding that he's developed some of his own sign lan- guage skills. "But as far as her disability, it's never a question of if she's going to fit in or not. It's welcomed. It's em- braced. It's supported. "Our team really understands that, regardless of any disability, everybody is different, and that's the beauty of it, embracing each other's differences. That's part of what makes our team special." GOLD RUSH Before Cronk's record-setting perfor- mance last month for Notre Dame, the highlight of her swimming career had come at the 2022 Deaflympics in Brazil when as a rising high school junior, she struck gold in each of the 12 events she competed in. It marked the most gold medals ever earned by a swimmer in a single Deaf- lympics over the 100-year history of the event, which attracted about 1,000 female competitors in Brazil. And now, as the most decorated deaf swimmer in the world, Cronk humbly embraces the "no limits" inspiration she's providing other swimmers and athletes from all corners of the globe. Irish Freshman Swimmer Carli Cronk Bucking The Odds N O T R E D A M E S P O R T S When Cronk posted a 400 individual medley time of 4:07.63 Jan. 25, she broke a Notre Dame program record that had stood since 2014. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS "