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Get To Know The University of North Carolina's Tommy Wyher

by Josh Huger (MrUtopia)

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Created July 28th, 2010 07:13:42 PM

Modified July 28th, 2010 07:13:42 PM

This interview is with the University of North Carolina's Tommy Wyher. Tommy who is a rising senior with the Tar Heels has been able to put together a very impressive list of accomplishments including eight school records, multiple ACC records, and four All- American statuses.

In this SwimUtopia interview we learn about what training at UNC is like and what the Tar Heel coaching staff does to help their athletes succeed in and out of the pool.

Let's get started!


What made you choose UNC?
The mix of swimming and academics made me choose UNC. UNC was also going through a coaching change and Coach Deselm made me excited to be a Tarheel. I wanted to help bring the program to the next level and I feel special to be helping out with that.

What other schools did you look at during your recruiting process?
I looked at Auburn, Virginia, and Stanford.

What is it like training with everyone at UNC?
It is a great atmosphere training at UNC. We grind out a lot of hard practices and wait for the end of the year to taper which is something I enjoy to see all the work put in pay off for everyone at the same time. I’m in the sprint group so I usually get out earlier or am resting so I get to watch a lot of practices. It is awesome to watch the group dynamics and the atmosphere that the swimmers and coaches create.

Why did you choose your current major?
I choose to be a Psychology major because it has always interested me. I like to figure out what makes a person tick.

How many times have you achieved all- American status?
I’ve achieved all-American status 4 times.

In what events?
100 Back, 100 Fly, 400 medley relay, and 400 Free relay

What has been your greatest moment in swimming so far?
Either going into NCAA’s as the top seed after not even scoring in the event in 2009. But my favorite moment was this year at ACC’s in the 200 medley relay going into my leg tied or even a little bit ahead and coming out of my leg with the lead and we won.

What are your top times?
100 fly scy-45.57
100 back scy-45.93
100 fly lcm-53.5?
100 back lcm-55.44

What UNC records do you hold?
100 Back 100 fly both short course and long course. 200 Back short course. And I’m also a part of the record holding 200 medley relay the 400 medley relay and 400 free relay.

What would you say motivates you?
I hate losing at things more than anything. Whether it is in the swimming pool or playing a video game I hate losing.   

What are some things that people may not know about you?
I call home everyday to talk to my grandparents. They are always fun to talk to. My grandfather says some really funny things. For example I still have my ears pierced  but when I came home with them pierced in high school my grandfather said something  that I will never forget “ The only way you can wear those in this house is if you wear a   dress.” He was kidding but I thought it was funny.

What is your favorite pump-up band or artist to listen to before racing?
I don’t listen to music very often at all, I don’t have an IPOD and have like 2 CD’s.

Do you have any pre-meet rituals?
Before a race I talk to myself ( I know it sounds crazy but I’m ok with it) and if my grandparents are at a meet I wave to my grandma during warm up.

What is your favorite food?
O god. This may be the hardest question out of all of these. I love peanut butter, but I also believe that any food from Taco Bell is God’s gift to earth. So I’d have to go with peanut butter, a 5 layer burrito, or a chicken queso burrito from qdoba.

Who has been the most influential person in your life?
My grandparents are the most influential people in my life. I’ve lived with them as long I can remember. They have always been supportive of me even when I’ve done stupid   things they always stay supportive.

What would you say is the hardest practice that you have ever done?
Most of the hardest practices I can remember have been anaerobic. But when I went home for Christmas break one year I was at my first practice with my club and we did long course. I really don’t like training long course in the first place but we had done   something like 10 100’s best average on 2 minutes then 16 50’s on a minute race pace.  Then we did some long aerobic set and we were at 6500 meters for the day so I thought  we would do warm down and end at 7000 meters. I was wrong and my coach Fred Lewis  gave us 30 100’s on 1:10 and I hate distance sets and barely made the set coming in at 1:09 for probably 29 of the 30 100’s. So my first practice back at my club during winter  break ended up being 10,000 meters after warm down.

What is your favorite type of practice?
I love to get up and race in heats with a lot of rest. Racing is my favorite thing to do in practice. I’m very competitive and this comes out during these sets as well as most of the sets we go hard on.

What do your coaches do to help set you up for success in and out of the pool?
My sprint coach Eric Stefanski would pretty much do anything to help any of his swimmers in and out of the pool. Whether it is coming in at a specific time to work on technique or it is going to lunch to talk about goals. I look at him as more of a partner rather than a coach because our goal is the same, to have me swim as fast as possible. He is a great coach and his dedication to the sport makes me want to come in and impress him everyday. 

At what point in your life did you know that you wanted to take swimming to the next level?
I figured out that I wanted to take swimming to the next level after NCAA’s this year. I got 5th in an event with a swim I was not even close to being happy with. I think that opened my eyes to how much better I was getting year after year.

Please list any other additional information that you would like to share!
I am the speed rice eating champion of our swim team. It has been called inspiring to watch me race eating rice by a close friend.