2019-20 Georgia Tech Everyday Champions Issue #3

“He will do whatever we ask of him in a meet situation so that we can win those meets,” said Hart, who used Pumputis in the 200 freestyle and backstroke and 100 butterfly this season. “He is super-humble and relishes the opportunity to be in school at Georgia Tech and to compete for Georgia Tech as we help him get to that next level. He’s a great teammate. He’s always hugging his teammates and trying to help them out. He’s just a great all-around guy. You want a team full of those.” Setting that example is paramount, in and out of the pool. “You put in hard work and show them that you’re not here just to play around, just to swim for two hours. You’re here to practice hard for two hours,” he said. “I think that’s the main thing. “I would say (I have) responsibility to get the most out of practice, eat healthy, go to class, get rest, go to bed earlier,” he added. “You know it’s college. You have a lot of parties going on to distract you from your goal. I’ve learned. That I have to focus and be myself.” Pumputis hasn’t considered his legacy. It’s not time to do that just yet. His focus is on those five rings. “I think about that every day,” he said. “That’s my goal and that’s what I keep in mind. Mentalizing me getting there and being there, I think is really important. Once I get there I’ll do my best to make it happen.”

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FACT A Georgia Tech swimmer has not won an NCAA Championship since Dave Young won the 150 backstroke in 1927.

Enter Coach Hart. She is determined to get Pumputis to Tokyo. “Our ultimate goal for Caio this year is to make his Olympic team,” she said. “I think certainly Caio has the ability to be an Olympic champion as well. It is a matter of taking care of yourself both in and out of the pool and also a balance in your life, which is one of the reasons that Caio is in school right now. So it’s not a sole focus. It is part of the focus. “I think he has what it takes,” Rego said. “There’s always something to be developed, of course, but it’s not something that he’s that far off from making the team. He has the mentality. His best events are further on in the competition. His third event is the most competitive, the one that he’s trying, is on the first day. He came to me and said, ‘I want to qualify on the first day,’ the event that people don’t think he’ll be able to make. That’s the kind of mentality that he has. Since the first day I was on campus and met him, the first thing we talked about was, ‘I’m going to make the Games.’” What has so many people rooting for Pumputis is that he wants his teammates to succeed as much as he does. The legacy of being a great teammate is as important to him as the number of top-10s and records he will set.

I HOPE TO QUALIFY FOR THE OLYMPICS IN THREE EVENTS, AS WELL — 100 BREAST, 200 BREAST AND 200 IM. I’VE GOT ON MY MIND THAT I HAVE TO PRACTICE MORE

TO ACHIEVE THIS GOAL...

—CAIO PUMPUTIS

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