The Justice

James Liu '10 poses for the camera. Mike Prada/the Justice

James Liu '10 has always been a natural when it comes to competitive swimming. Less than a year after he started as a teenager, he swam the 100-meter butterfly at his first club team meet and surprised even himself by winning. Last year, as a rookie, Liu immediately became the Judges' top swimmer, winning 15 individual events during the season.

But that success hasn't satisfied Liu, and he has been training more vigorously in the past year than ever before.

"I'm focusing more on my technique and focusing mentally more on my sets than last year," Liu said. "This year, I'm more mentally tough, and that has helped me train better."

The training has paid off, as Liu has already won 14 individual events this season in leading the Judges to a 3-3 record. In last Thursday's win over Wheaton College, Liu won three events for the third time this season, taking the 100-yard backstroke, 100-yard butterfly and 200-yard individual medley events.

"We were mentally exhausted from [our midseason training trip], but we knew we could push through the pain," he said. "I felt like we definitely deserved to swim fast."

More impressive than Liu's victories, however, is his versatility. His 14 wins have come in seven different events, and he has notched event wins in freestyle, backstroke and butterfly races, as well as in individual medley events, which require the swimmer to swim each of the four major strokes.

Despite a long list of accomplishments, Liu doesn't dwell on his rookie season, modestly admitting he was drained at times after races last year. But thanks to his intense training, Liu said he feels more confident before meets, and it has resulted in better times.

"Mentally, I'm more prepared," he said. "I know, going into meets, what people expect of me, and how I should race."

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