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Olympian speaks at orthopaedic graduation

The UNMC Department of Orthopaedic Surgery hosted former Olympic swimmer Dara Torres as the Harold and Marian Andersen Lecturer at this year’s orthopaedic resident graduation ceremony last week.

Torres, a 12-time Olympic medalist and a former world record-holder in three swimming events, spoke to a full room at the Sorrell Center about a topic near and dear to her heart — swimming. She presented, “Don’t Put an Age Limit on Your Dreams,” which reflected on her accomplishments as the oldest swimmer to ever compete in the Olympic Games. Torres has competed in five Summer Olympic Games dating back to 1984.

Torres was just 14 when she burst onto the international swimming scene. But it was her performance at the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008 that made her a household name. At 41 years old, she won three silver medals, including a heartbreaking 50-meter freestyle race in which she missed the gold by 1/100th of a second

When she initially decided to make a comeback for the 2008 Olympics, Torres — then in her late 30s — said she knew it would take more than just hard work to make a medal happen.

“It was the power of positive thinking,” she said. “The physical work up to that point obviously is very important, but it’s amazing how much mental capacity can play a role in how you perform. There’s no way I would have won a medal if I hadn’t thought positively about it for the whole entire two years that I was training.”

In all, Torres swam in five different Olympics from the time she was a teenager to her final appearance at age 41. She won a 2009 ESPY award for “Best Comeback,” and is also a best-selling author, motivational speaker and news commentator/guest host.

“My entire life has been based around swimming,” she said. “I learned about sacrifice, hard work and dedication. Don’t put an age limit on your dreams.”

Torres has fond memories in Omaha, having last competed here in 2012. Torres will return to Omaha later this month to watch her fellow swimmers compete for a spot on this year’s Olympic team in Rio de Janeiro.

The Sports Medicine Program at Nebraska Medicine is the medical provider of USA Swimming athletes and USA Swimming in Omaha.