Urlando Needed Patience On His Olympic Journey
July 29, 2024 | The Frierson Files, Men's Swimming & Diving
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
If anything was going to get Jack Bauerle coaching again, even if only for a week, it was going to be one of his former swimmers. And there he was one Friday morning in late June, standing beside the pool that bears his name inside Georgia's Gabrielsen Natatorium, talking with Luca Urlando during a workout.
Urlando, a rising fifth-year Bulldog who redshirted this past season to focus on the 2024 Olympics while recovering from shoulder surgery, was in town training for a week before heading to a U.S. team training camp and then on to Paris after qualifying at the U.S. Trials in the 200-meter butterfly. Urlando and Bauerle had worked well together in the past, and both appeared happy to be back in their familiar roles.
"It's absolutely fun, it's great," said Bauerle, who retired in June 2022 after more than 50 years as a Georgia swimmer and coach. "I think Luca called me at 7:30 the morning after Olympic Trials and I answered and said: 'Let me guess, am I coaching this next week?'"
Yes, he was.
"Jack and I had a really cool and special relationship before he retired, and I was definitely missing that a little bit," said Urlando, whose father, Alex, was an All-American discus thrower for Georgia and still holds the school record of 201 feet, 5 inches, set in 1996.
Urlando's grandfather competed for Italy in the hammer throw in Los Angeles in 1984, and Luca will make his Olympic debut on Tuesday morning in a 200 fly preliminary heat. The semifinal heat is later that day, and the 200 final is Wednesday.
"I'm happy for him and proud for him," Bauerle said of Urlando making his first Olympic team.
In the finals of the 200 butterfly at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 2021, for the Tokyo Games, Urlando and former Georgia great Gunnar Bentz were two of the eight competitors. Urlando was in second place after 100 and 150 meters, but winner Zach Harting and runner-up Bentz had the two fastest final legs to lock up their spots on the U.S. team.
Harting won in 1:55.06, Bentz was second in 1:55.34 and Urlando was just behind him at 1:55.43. He missed making his first Olympic team by less than a tenth of a second.
"I definitely grew from that moment," said Urlando, who owns school records in the 100 freestyle, backstroke and butterfly, as well as the 200 fly and 200 individual medley.
"I'm not going to lie, it was devastating. But I think just being patient with yourself, and I think that's one of the biggest things that I think I've learned through this process and journey is just being patient with myself — and giving myself more credit (for the things I have achieved)."
Urlando's journey took a significant turn in November 2022. While racing in the World Aquatics World Cup Series, Urlando dislocated his left shoulder for the third time. It was "a heartbreaking day," Georgia men's head coach Neil Versfeld said. Urlando had surgery to fix the issue, forcing him to miss the rest of the 2022-23 Georgia season as well as all big international meets.
A swimmer's shoulders are essential, invaluable, and Urlando had a long road back to being one of the best in college and beyond — but the clock was ticking. After the surgery, Urlando had 18 months to recover and prepare for the 2024 U.S. Trials.
"I think I did have to overcome feeling comfortable in the water again and pushing my body to the limits. But at the same time, if you can make it a little bit simpler for yourself, and just be like, I need to go to practice or do rehab today. It makes it a little bit easier than just being like, Oh, I have 18 months from my surgery until Olympic Trials. That's when you start overthinking everything."
"If anyone could do it, it was going to be Luca," Versfeld said of Urlando's return to the top of the spot in time for June's Trials.
At the 2022 World Championships, Urlando placed fifth in the 200 butterfly. At the 2024 U.S. Trials, three years after barely missing out on the Tokyo Olympics and 18 months after major shoulder surgery, Urlando raced to a second-place finish with a time of 1:55.08, just behind winner Thomas Heilman's 1:54.50.
"Everything that had happened made it so much more worth it to accomplish this goal," Urlando said.
For Bauerle, that Trials performance was just the beginning of the next chapter of Urlando's career.
"He's not satisfied with that," Bauerle said of Urlando making his first Olympics. "He wants to swim faster and faster. ... And I think he will."
Â
Staff Writer
If anything was going to get Jack Bauerle coaching again, even if only for a week, it was going to be one of his former swimmers. And there he was one Friday morning in late June, standing beside the pool that bears his name inside Georgia's Gabrielsen Natatorium, talking with Luca Urlando during a workout.
Urlando, a rising fifth-year Bulldog who redshirted this past season to focus on the 2024 Olympics while recovering from shoulder surgery, was in town training for a week before heading to a U.S. team training camp and then on to Paris after qualifying at the U.S. Trials in the 200-meter butterfly. Urlando and Bauerle had worked well together in the past, and both appeared happy to be back in their familiar roles.
"It's absolutely fun, it's great," said Bauerle, who retired in June 2022 after more than 50 years as a Georgia swimmer and coach. "I think Luca called me at 7:30 the morning after Olympic Trials and I answered and said: 'Let me guess, am I coaching this next week?'"
Yes, he was.
"Jack and I had a really cool and special relationship before he retired, and I was definitely missing that a little bit," said Urlando, whose father, Alex, was an All-American discus thrower for Georgia and still holds the school record of 201 feet, 5 inches, set in 1996.
Urlando's grandfather competed for Italy in the hammer throw in Los Angeles in 1984, and Luca will make his Olympic debut on Tuesday morning in a 200 fly preliminary heat. The semifinal heat is later that day, and the 200 final is Wednesday.
"I'm happy for him and proud for him," Bauerle said of Urlando making his first Olympic team.
In the finals of the 200 butterfly at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 2021, for the Tokyo Games, Urlando and former Georgia great Gunnar Bentz were two of the eight competitors. Urlando was in second place after 100 and 150 meters, but winner Zach Harting and runner-up Bentz had the two fastest final legs to lock up their spots on the U.S. team.
Harting won in 1:55.06, Bentz was second in 1:55.34 and Urlando was just behind him at 1:55.43. He missed making his first Olympic team by less than a tenth of a second.
"I definitely grew from that moment," said Urlando, who owns school records in the 100 freestyle, backstroke and butterfly, as well as the 200 fly and 200 individual medley.
"I'm not going to lie, it was devastating. But I think just being patient with yourself, and I think that's one of the biggest things that I think I've learned through this process and journey is just being patient with myself — and giving myself more credit (for the things I have achieved)."
Urlando's journey took a significant turn in November 2022. While racing in the World Aquatics World Cup Series, Urlando dislocated his left shoulder for the third time. It was "a heartbreaking day," Georgia men's head coach Neil Versfeld said. Urlando had surgery to fix the issue, forcing him to miss the rest of the 2022-23 Georgia season as well as all big international meets.
A swimmer's shoulders are essential, invaluable, and Urlando had a long road back to being one of the best in college and beyond — but the clock was ticking. After the surgery, Urlando had 18 months to recover and prepare for the 2024 U.S. Trials.
"I think I did have to overcome feeling comfortable in the water again and pushing my body to the limits. But at the same time, if you can make it a little bit simpler for yourself, and just be like, I need to go to practice or do rehab today. It makes it a little bit easier than just being like, Oh, I have 18 months from my surgery until Olympic Trials. That's when you start overthinking everything."
"If anyone could do it, it was going to be Luca," Versfeld said of Urlando's return to the top of the spot in time for June's Trials.
At the 2022 World Championships, Urlando placed fifth in the 200 butterfly. At the 2024 U.S. Trials, three years after barely missing out on the Tokyo Olympics and 18 months after major shoulder surgery, Urlando raced to a second-place finish with a time of 1:55.08, just behind winner Thomas Heilman's 1:54.50.
"Everything that had happened made it so much more worth it to accomplish this goal," Urlando said.
For Bauerle, that Trials performance was just the beginning of the next chapter of Urlando's career.
"He's not satisfied with that," Bauerle said of Urlando making his first Olympics. "He wants to swim faster and faster. ... And I think he will."
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Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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