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After overcoming several injuries, Amy Bilquist looked poised for a strong 2019 summer season heading into the Olympic year.
She overcame a stress fracture and a broken foot to lead Cal to a stellar runner-up finish at the NCAA championships in March, earning an individual runner-up finish and being part of three national title relays.
Bilquist then decided to move to Arizona to join the Scottsdale Aquatic Club after graduation to refocus on her swimming heading into 2020.
But seemingly no sooner than she put the Scottsdale cap on for a major meet, her summer season was in jeopardy after breaking her hand during warm-ups of the TYR Pro Swim Series in Clovis.
“The initial break, when I heard it pop, I got instantly nauseous, but I was trying to stay cool and collected. It was the day of the 50 free and 100 back, which are my favorite events. When I hit my hand and got out of the pool, I knew I did something to it,” Bilquist told Swimming World. “I know what a break feels like. I was doing backstroke (warm-up) and someone jumped in super aggressively, and their wave rolled me over and my pinky caught the lane line. But when I went to pull, my pinky stayed and my hand separated.”
Five weeks later, Bilquist was cleared to compete at the 2019 Phillips 66 US National Championships just four days before the meet began.
But her competitive nature had her ready, even on short notice. She made the B final in the 100 free on Wednesday to open her meet.
“I just got cleared on Friday. I didn’t know if I was strong enough, especially if I got hit again in warm-ups for sometime. But I am really excited I am here. I just feel squirrelly on my freestyle because it is all legs and not a lot of upper body,” she said. “I had a pretty good start, so I am excited for the 50 — I just need to get stronger for the 100 free. The top sprint freestylers in the world are very strong and that is something I have always tried to aim for. I just need to keep working in that direction.”
Amy Bilquist; Photo Courtesy: Dan D’Addona
Immediately after the injury, Bilquist, again, ever the competitor, tried to continue at the Clovis meet.
“I talked to some physical therapists and a doctor on deck and they advised me to go to the emergency room. But I was so gung-ho on swimming one event that I ran to the locker room with my mom. She helped me put my racing suit on. I really couldn’t pull it up with one hand. I swam a 50 free, and when I dove in, I heard it pop again and I realized I needed to stop and take care of it,” she said.
Bilquist went to urgent care, where X-rays confirmed she broke her left hand.
“I finally broke down and started crying,” she said. “It just felt like another defeat. I had just moved on Arizona to focus on training and that just got ripped out from underneath me.”
She didn’t have to have surgery, but she had to have a hard splint for five weeks and only kick in the water.
“I kicked like absolute crazy,” she said. “My splint went from my fingertips to almost my elbow.”
It was emotionally and physically taxing as Bilquist wondered whether she would be healthy enough to swim the rest of the season.
“There were days when I would feel super motivated and other days where I would get on deck, look at Kevin (Zacher) and just start crying. All I wanted to do was train and I couldn’t train how I needed to,” Amy Bilquist said. “My legs got a lot stronger, which has been really good for my backstroke. But my upper body kind of went down a little bit. Weights have been interesting. I feel like I have gotten stronger in a lot of ways, like my core is much stronger. My weight coach told me it was a blessing in disguise.”
During her final meet at Cal, Bilquist was part of the American record-setting 200 free relay, turning heads with a 20.87 split. She swam 21.52 in the 50 free, her career-best time, and finished sixth.
Her long-course work has been stellar over the years as well, most notably, finishing third and fourth in the backstroke events at the 2016 Olympic trials.
Since barely missing the team, Bilquist’s career has been through a lot of drama with injuries and moves. She maintains that dramatic changes give her the push.
This injury is just the latest dramatic event pushing her every step of the way.
She said: “It puts into perspective how much I really want to continue to pursue this goal — this dream.”
