Hoff swims into Beijing under the sonar

Back then, she looked at the big Olympic pool and towering grandstands and said, “Wow!” In Beijing, she walked into the Water Cube, Beijing’s amazing swimming venue, and said, “Oh, god.”

The difference is in the tone she used in delivering those two sound bites. The first suggested, “Wow, I’ve never seen anything like this before.” The second suggested, “Oh, god, isn’t this just the coolest thing you’ve ever seen?”

“I don’t feel like the whole world’s swirling around me,” she said. “Four years of experience has really helped me out.”

Of course, anybody can say she’s grown up. She still has to prove it in the pool. But she is a seasoned veteran now, no longer a kid amazed to find herself in the Olympics but a world champion who has come to the place she has spent the last four years expecting to be.

She’s not predicting six gold medals, and no one else is offering to do it for her. She’s got heavy competition in some of her events, especially Australian Stephanie Rice in the two medley races. The two have traded world records in the 400 and Rice holds the world record in the 200.

Hoff is also swimming the 200, 400 and 800-meter freestyle races for five individual events, plus the 4x200-meter freestyle relay.

She’s not thinking about setting records or winning medals, just swimming her best. She knows she’ll be nervous when she starts her quest on Saturday, but a good nervous, not a bad one.
Asked about her goals, all she’d say was this: “If I swim my best, I can be a contender for medals in all my events.”

But can she win six golds?

“That,” she said, “Is a lot to ask for.”

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