Photograph by Paul Myers
Erica Liu, 15, of Saratoga, made the United States National Junior Swim Team. She will compete at the 39th Junior Team International Competition in Rome in May and June.
Saratogan gets ready to swim for U.S. Junior National team in Italy
By Rebecca Ray
When Erica Liu took up swimming at age 8, she did it just to stay in shape. Liu, a Saratoga resident, had no idea she'd swim for the United States National Junior Team at age 15.
Liu, a sophomore at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, made the team in August. Females must be 15 or under, and males must be 17 or under to qualify. Liu qualified by swimming 1:10.38 in the 100-meter breaststroke, in which she finished eighth, and 2:34.39 in the 200-meter breaststroke, in which she finished 11th, at the Phillips 66 Summer Nationals.
In May and June, Liu and her 13 female junior teammates will spend eight days competing at the 39th Junior Team International Competition in Rome. In addition to the 100- and 200-meter breaststrokes, Liu will compete in the 200-meter individual medley. In the individual medley, swimmers do the butterfly for the first part of the race, then the backstroke, the breaststroke, and finish by swimming freestyle. Although Liu has competed against swimmers from other nations before, this will be her first time competing outside the United States.
Liu ranks 34th worldwide among female swimmers in the 100-meter breaststroke and 83rd in the 200-meter breaststroke.
As a freshman, Liu was named Most Valuable Player of Mitty's varsity team. At the high school 2001 Central Coast Section championships, she placed second in both the 100-yard breaststroke and 100-yard butterfly, and swam on the school's 200-yard and 400-yard freestyle relay teams, which placed first. In 2001, Liu was the top private school freshman female swimmer in the nation in the 100-yard breaststroke and butterfly.
"She's a natural, and she's a hard worker, and when you put those two together, you get a phenomenal swimmer," said Tom Miller, Liu's coach at Mitty.
But no one would guess that Liu was a world-class swimmer, Miller says, because she's not stuck-up. "What makes her special is that she comes across as a regular kid," Miller said. In fact, he says Liu's greatest quality is her witty, wise, sarcastic and lively personality.
Pete Raykovich, Liu's coach for the past two years at the De Anza Cupertino Aquatics swim club, says that Liu's desire to compete successfully comes out of her love for racing.
Raykovich also says that Liu is a good model for student-athletes, because she pursues excellence in both athletics and academics.
But it's not that Liu hasn't made sacrifices. Liu, who practices six days a week, from one to three hours a day, misses at least 12 days of school each year. "But then, when you go to a meet and you do well ... or just have a bond with the other teammates or coach, it's worth it," she said.
When Liu started swimming, she and her parents, Jim and Tina Liu, weren't looking for her to compete internationally. In fact, when Liu attended Redwood Middle School, she even considered quitting swimming to make time for soccer, which she had played since fourth grade.
But after Liu turned 13, she got a lot faster, so fast that she won the women's 100-yard breaststroke at the Speedo Junior Championships in 2000. Her time broke the Pacific 13-to-14 age group record set in 1986. Liu also qualified to compete at the 2000 Olympic Trials, at which she placed 18th in the 100-meter breaststroke and was chosen as second alternate for the Olympic Team. However, she never got to compete at the Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.
Liu ended up giving up soccer and decided to attend Mitty because of its swimming program.
Liu says she would eventually like to compete in the Olympics.
She lives with her father, Jim, an insurance agent; mother, Tina, a homemaker; and brother, Mark, a fourth-grader at Sacred Heart Elementary School.
Liu also has an older brother, Bryan, who graduated from Saratoga High School in 2001 and attends Arizona State University.
Saratoga, California Since 1955
