SwimSwam visited Indiana University recently and got the opportunity to speak with recent Tunisian transplant Ahmed Hafnaoui, the surprise 2020 Olympic Champion in the men’s 400m freestyle. Hafnaoui says he has enjoyed training in Bloomington, especially with Egyptian training partner Marwan El Kamash (training video coming soon).
Since Hafnaoui isn’t eligible to compete in the NCAA this year (he took a gap year in 2020-21 during high school to focus on the Olympics), he is aiming his sights for the upcoming world championships in Fukuoka.
Why would taking a gap year leave you ineligible to compete?
He did an interview with IndyStar last week that said that it had something to do with the SAT/ACT or some other academic equivalency tests. It’s not the first time this has happened with an athlete from a country that doesn’t send a lot of people to the US for an education.
what an awful comment….how about being happy for him for coming to the United States to get an education and further his swimming career.
good stuff! Looking forward to seeing what he can do…and that challenge set sound nuts!
This comment makes nonsensical comments look rational.