How did you get into swimming?

Both of my parents were swimmers. They swam in college and my dad was a British Olympian, so they’ve put me in swimming ever since I was young.

Your brother, Aaron Shackell, was also in the Olympics. How have you both motivated each other to keep going?

I think a lot of it is that (swimming) is just in our blood. We both love swimming and moving to Carmel helped us out. We don’t talk too much to each other about swimming but swimming together has just helped us out naturally. 

How has moving to Carmel helped you with swimming?

(It’s helped) with the coaches and my teammates. The work is totally different than anywhere I’ve ever been before so it’s just a different level of everything.

How often and for how long do you practice?

We have 10 practices a week; four of them are in the morning and the rest, except for Saturday morning, are at night. In the morning, they vary between two and three hours and at night the practices are an hour and 45 minutes. 

How have you been able to maintain a balance between school, swimming and your social life?

I think that the school helps me out a lot, like last year I got athletic release as a junior so I didn’t have a full class schedule, which helped a lot, and then just talking with my teachers, they helped me out and helped me manage my workload.

Since prelims for swimming were in Indianapolis, do you think you were helped at all by having a “home field advantage?”

For sure. I got to stay at my house while other athletes had to stay at hotels. So I got my own home-cooked meals and my own bed which was really nice.

How is it like competing with swimmers who are multiple years older than you?

I honestly don’t think about it that much unless they are like 40 or something and then I think that’s a little weird but I don’t think about it often. It just feels pretty natural.

What was your favorite memory from the trials?

Probably either when (brother) Aaron (Shackell) made the team and I was screaming, or when I made the team.

Did your training change after you learned you were going to the Olympics?

It changed a little bit. I wasn’t going as hard as I was before like I would in normal practice but I had to get back to work a little bit. But I had more easy days than I would usually have.

How did you train while at the Olympic training camp in Croatia?

There the practice was pretty much the same thing (as it was back home). I was going two days hard, one day easy and it was outdoors and the pool was pretty hot so we had to adjust sometimes, but I got to train with other athletes, which was nice.

In the relays you competed in, did you view them more as an individual sport with a team component or completely as a team sport?

I think relays are always a team thing and you’re putting your best effort in to hopefully secure a spot (for the team) or to win the relays. So that was my plan; I wasn’t focusing too much on myself. Here at Carmel we have a thing called “FTT,” which means “for the team,” so I took that mindset to my race.

What were you thinking while you were competing?

Part of me was like, “There’s no way this is happening right now,” while also thinking about my race plan, but there was definitely a lot of shock and a lot of thinking “What’s going on right now?”

Did you have any nerves while competing?

There’s always going to be nerves and stuff but I tried to remain pretty calm and I knew I was ready for the race.

How did it feel when you learned you helped your team qualify for finals?

It was great. I knew as long as we all did our jobs, we would be in a great spot. Especially in the medley relay, one girl broke a world record so that was insane. 

How was it like earning the two medals?

It was amazing. Just to hold them and wear them around my neck and now I can show them to people is like the coolest thing and I’ve always wanted to do that. So it was a surreal moment.

What was your favorite non-competition memory from the Olympics? 

I got to meet (gymnast) Simone Biles, which was pretty cool; it was like a fangirl moment and also just getting to try different foods outside of the Olympic Village and just going exploring and stuff was really fun. 

Was it jarring at all to go from the Olympics to the first week of your senior year?

It was definitely a little strange. I was a little more recognized, which is not usual for the swim team, but it’s nice and the swimmers themselves are getting the recognition they deserve. 

How was the response from the Carmel community after you got back?

It was only positive. Everyone was really kind to me and welcoming to me and there’s a lot of things I get to do now. Having the whole staff behind me and going out on the football field during the first game was really cool. 

What are your future plans regarding swimming?

For the long term, I just want to keep going for four more years and make the Los Angeles Olympic games, but for right now I’m just focused on high school and spending time on enjoying that.