Yardley’s Swim Star David Curtiss Fresh Off the Olympic Trials

Photo Credit Aidan Medina

David Curtiss, has been making waves in Lower Makefield since he was 9- years old. At the time he may not have known those basic water safety classes at the YMCA were his first strokes towards a lifetime of swimming success. He swam with Pennsbury Aquatics program and at The Pennington School, where his high school career culminated with his history-making record for the fastest 50- yard freestyle at a lightning speed of 19.11 seconds. David recently competed alongside the world's best athletes a the Olympic trials in Omaha, Nebraska. Now back in Bucks he took a breath from swimming to talk with Happenings Media about the Olympics, his training, living in Bucks County, and what's next for this local swim star.

HM: Tell us what it was like to swim at the Olympic trials.

DC: It was pretty humbling. It was a huge arena full of the best athletes in the world. I was out of my element. It was my first Olympic trials. I wasn't mentally prepared for it. But I will be when I go back in 3 years and hopefully get a chance to compete for a spot in Paris.

HM: What did you learn from that experience?

DC: I learned I need to work on my self-talk and control my mental game. I wasn't prepared for how I'd feel there competing against the best athletes in the world. It definitely messed with my thoughts but I'll be working on it. I know now more about the mental aspect and what it takes to be able to do that.

HM: It's interesting for us to hear you say you had self-doubt. Your fans see you as one of the best in the world and you've earned your spot there. Tell us how you performed overall.

DC: I went in seeded at 5th, placed 13th out of prelims, which dropped me to 8th, and placed 6th after the finals.

HM: What is something you've learned from your coaches that you can share with other athletes?

DC: I've had so many great coaches. For me swimming is extremely boring, you spend a lot of time just looking at a line. My coaches taught me to set goals for myself at the beginning of my season. I'd tell others to map out where you want to be at different points. All those goals will add up to bigger and better results in the end. Not to mention it makes it more fun because I have something to work towards and something to look forward to.

HM: What's next for you?

DC: I'm going to take a break and enjoy my summer with my friends. Then I'm headed to NC State to swim D1, study Criminology with a Psychology minor and my foreign language will be Arabic.