Peirsol emerges from shadow

Newport Harbor High product Hayley Peirsol had trained rigorously all

summer in the hopes of furthering her swimming career.

Indeed, it paid off.

Described as a breakout season by one of her coaches, Peirsol

grabbed numerous titles during the heated months and capped them with

a meet record and gold medal at the World University Games last week

in Turkey.

Peirsol, a junior at Auburn, claimed the women’s 1,500-meter

freestyle title in a meet record 16 minutes, 8.06 seconds August 16

in Izmir, Turkey, breaking the previous meet record of 16:14.70 set

in 2003.

Her crown was the outcome of a grueling summer.

“I was pretty happy,” said Peirsol, the younger sister of

world-record holder Aaron Peirsol. “It was a really long week and to

be able to do that after that week, I couldn’t ask for more.”

Peirsol raced in the first day of competition -- taking second in

the 800 free August 12 -- but had to wait four days until her 1,500

free event, which created a stressful situation, she said.

“It was hard to keep motivated,” she said.

Her successful week in Turkey was the outcome of a laborious

training schedule during the summer months at the William Woollett

Jr. Aquatics Center in Irvine, where she swam with the Novaquatics

team and developed under coaching greats Dave Salo and John

Urbanchek.

Since late May, the 200 and 500 free CIF Southern Section Division

I champion as a senior at Newport Harbor in 2003, has been training

under Salo -- the U.S. men’s swimming coach for the recent FINA World

Championships -- and Urbanchek -- the former Michigan coach.

Urbanchek, who was an assistant to Salo for the Novaquatics team,

watched Peirsol progress and challenge herself during the few months

they had together.

“She’s had an awesome season from the time she arrived back from

Auburn,” said Urbanchek, a distance specialist. “She’s extremely fit,

probably the fittest she’s ever been in her life, and her training is

exceptional. It all came together in Turkey.”

Peirsol’s successful summer campaign included victories in the

Janet Evans invitational and the most-recent World University Games.

She claimed the 1,500 free, 800 free, 400 free and 400 individual

medley titles in the Janet Evans invitational at USC in July prior to

attending the World University Games.

And her summer swimming season was preluded by a second-place

finish in the 1,650-yard free at the NCAA Division I women’s swimming

and diving championships in March.

“She’s no longer a shadow [of Aaron Peirsol],” Urbanchek said.

“She’s becoming more of an entity.”

A little more than a year after graduating from Newport Harbor in

2003, Hayley Peirsol missed qualifying for the 2004 Olympics in

Greece, finishing fourth in the 800-meter free final at the U.S.

Olympic trials.

Peirsol said there is a high possibility for a second Olympic push

-- the 2008 games in Beijing. Unfortunately for the former Tar,

however, the 1,500 free -- her best event -- isn’t an Olympic

contest.

She would try the 800 again, she said.

“If I’m still one of the top three swimmers than obviously 100%

[chance I will train for the Olympics],” Peirsol said. “If I have a

good chance to make it and if I’m competing well, then I will do it.

But three years sounds like it’s way far down there.”

If her recent summer training campaign, which Urbanchek said

totaled about 70,000 meters of swimming per week, was any indicator,

her chances could be good for the future.

“It was hard. It was really hard,” Peirsol said. “But I enjoyed

it. There was a good group of guys to train with. I would come home

every day, eat and go to bed.”

Peirsol was ranked No. 1 in the nation in the 500 free and No. 14

in the 200 in 2003, as she garnered All-American status the month

after she graduated from Newport Harbor.

To gain her All-American status, Peirsol met the standard set by

the National Interscholastic Swimming Coaches Association.

Her senior year at Newport, Peirsol led the Sailors to a

second-place finish at the CIF Southern Section Division I finals.

Irvine captured the title in 2003, as standout Courtney Cashion won

two events -- the only other swimmer aside from Peirsol on the girls

side to double up.

Her older brother, Aaron Peirsol, claimed three Olympic gold

medals at the Athens Games last summer.