Most people in Dana Vollmer’s position wouldn’t even have a chance at being an Olympian. Most people aren’t Dana Vollmer.
The 28-year-old won a gold medal four years ago at the 2012 London games and decided she’d move on from her professional swimming career, according to a profile by NBC Sports. She and her husband had their first child, the pregnancy forced Vollmer into bed rest for 7 1/2 weeks. She gained 50 pounds over those nine months.
When she could finally get up and move again after the birth of her son, Vollmer realized she missed swimming more than she expected. So she got back in the pool, hardly able to finish her warmup, and got back in to shape. That was last year.
Sunday, she won a bronze medal in the women’s 100M butterfly final, missing out on gold by 1.15 seconds to Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom, who set a world record in the process. It’s Vollmer’s second medal of the games, coming a night after winning a silver medal in the 4x100M relay.
Talk about Mom Strength. If a story like Vollmer’s isn’t what the Olympics are all about, we don’t know what is.
H/t to NBC Sports
Thumbnail photo via Erich Schlegel/USA TODAY Sports Images
