With parents who met at a swim club in Holland, there’s no way Matt Grevers could have avoided the water.
And ever since he was dragged to his brother’s and sister’s swim meets as a kid, Grevers hasn’t been able to get away from the pool. Now a senior at Lake Forest High School, Grevers is one of the fastest high school swimmers in the world.
“I’d say he’s probably the top recruit in the country,” said Northwestern junior Mark Hamming, Grevers high school teammate. “And aside from that, he’s a really nice guy.”
The swimming sensation owns three individual Illinois high school records in the 50-yard freestyle, 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke. His Lake Forest relay team also set two more records in this year’s state championships in March.
“He doesn’t get the kudos he deserves,” said Lea Maurer, his high school and club team coach. “He’s really one of the best swimmers that Illinois has ever seen.”
After weighing scholarship offers from some of the top college swimming programs in the country — Auburn, California and Texas — Grevers chose to attend NU.
Coming from a swimming family and a close-knit high school squad, Grevers looked for a program that stressed camaraderie.
“Texas had more of a business-like atmosphere,” Grevers said. “They didn’t do it as a team, they did it for themselves.”
Grevers said he was the most comfortable with the Wildcats, who finished 26th in this year’s NCAA Championships.
“Matt loves the guys,” Maurer said. “These guys on the Northwestern team will be his friends for life.”
Grevers has already earned national recognition before taking his first dip in a collegiate meet.
In January he traveled to Sydney, Australia, where he won four gold medals at the Youth Olympic Festival. Grevers broke the country’s record in the 100-meter backstroke with a time of 56.41, making the American citizen the fastest 17-year-old to swim the event in Australia.
Before he shined on the U.S. junior national team, Grevers said he didn’t harbor any Olympic aspirations. But that all changed after his international success.
“It made me want to be an Olympian,” Grevers said. “I want to experience the real thing.”
Maurer, a former Olympic gold medalist, said Grevers has a chance to nab a spot on the 2008 U.S. team and plans to try out for the 2004 squad.
Despite all of his recent success, Grevers has remained modest.
“He’s never been one to brag about things,” said his father, Ed Grevers. “Some of his friends didn’t even know he was swimming.”
But his teammates could always count on him. Battling a case of mononucleosis, Grevers carried his team to an Illinois state championship.
“I think he really feels like he’s carrying a burden,” Maurer said. “He didn’t want to let the team down.”
Now Grevers will try to carry NU to the top of the Big Ten. While he’s looking forward to the overall college experience, Grevers plans to stay focused on his swimming — and he knows what he’ll need to do to lead NU to success.
“Swim my ass off,” he said.
