The Olympics is one of the most watched sporting events. In the 2024 Paris Summer Games according to eMarketer, “viewership bonanza for NBCUniversal, attracting an average of 30.6 million viewers across its platforms-an 82% increase from the Tokyo Games.” The Games highlight many talented athletes from all around the world. 

2021 and 2024 Olympic competitive swimmer Nic Fink has recently become popular in the Olympic swimming field. Fink has won six World Championship gold medals and placed fifth in the 200 breaststroke at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Fink had an outstanding performance, winning two silver medals in the men’s 100-meter breaststroke and 4×100-meter medley relay. Finally, Fink won a gold medal in the 4×100 meter medley relay. 

Surprisingly, Fink is a fantastic athlete and works a nine-to-five job. After receiving his master’s in electrical and computer engineering from “Georgia Tech,” he now works for Quanta Utility Engineering Services in Dallas, Texas. 

In an interview with NBC Fink said, “I thought there was a chance that as I dedicated more time into engineering, perhaps my swimming career would begin to sunset. But finding that balance has helped me in both, and my swimming has been just as good or better than ever. It’s been fun to enjoy this part of the ride.” 

As a swimmer myself, balancing two-hour practices five days a week can be very difficult at times. I do swim competitively but nothing even close to an Olympic level. I cannot imagine balancing extreme competition and a full-time job. 

Senior choir major Ghost Kitchen expresses their opinion on Nic Fink’s 9-5 job and Olympic career: “It’s interesting to think about finding time to train for the Olympics while working a nine-to-five, because that can be a lot of hard work, and it can be hard to find the time to actually pursue something like this. Honestly, I think that’s really cool Kitchen said.

After the 2024 Paris Olympics Fink said, “I don’t wanna say anything definitively, but there is definitely a point [where] life beckons and life happens. The call to slow down gets too strong to not answer. I think I’ve certainly heard that call more and more these days, but I don’t like to close the door on anything. You just never know. The focus is this summer, and then we’ll see, after that, what’s in store.”