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Reynolds making a big splash for LHS
Published July 22, 2009
LOGANVILLE — Doug Reynolds has stood in the presence of greatness and not flinched. He’s stared into the eyes of the best and not blinked.
Earlier this month, the Loganville High School rising senior competed at the USA Swimming World Championship Trials in Indianapolis, Indiana. He had qualified in two events, the 100-meter freestyle and the 100-meter butterfly.
On the third day of the meet, he found himself matched up in the same event — the 100 butterfly — against Michael Phelps, the three-time Olympian with 14 gold medals and seven world swimming records to his name.
Reynolds placed a respectable 32nd with a time of 55.48 seconds. Phelps won the event and, in the process, set his eighth world record with a time of 50.22.
“Because I was a swimmer, I was on deck when he did it,” Reynolds said. “I was probably six feet behind his lane.”
But despite such easy access to the swimmer most consider the best in the history of the sport, Reynolds returned home without an autograph.
“I had plenty of chances,” Reynolds said. “But as a swimmer it just feels different. There’s a mutual respect and understanding among the competitors that you don’t get autographs from your opponents. They way I look at it is he made his times to get there, but I did to. I deserved to be there.”
Reynolds deserved to be there by virtue of his dominating performances in Georgia and throughout the southeast.
On the high school level, Reynolds has virtually rewritten the Red Devils record book. He set five school marks this past season and holds 10 of 11 school records. At the state high school championships, he placed third in both the 50- and 100-meter freestyle.
He’s competed in meets in Orlando and Charlotte so far this summer and will miss the first few days of school to travel to Seattle for the U.S. Open Swimming Championships.
Heading into this weekend’s Georgia Long Course Senior State Championships at the University of Georgia, Reynolds is ranked first in the state in five events, the 50- and 100-meter butterfly and the 50-, 100- and 200-meter freestyle. Nationally, he’s ranked 11th in the 50 freestyle, 17th in the 100 freestyle and 25th in the 200 freestyle.
His amazing run of success has not gone without notice. On July 1, the first day college coaches were allowed to start contacting recruits, Reynolds’ phone started ringing. So far, he’s talked with nearly a dozen recruiters from major Division I-A programs.
“I definitely want to swim in college,” Reynolds said. “I’m just trying to narrow down my list of official visits and find the school that’s the best fit for me.”
But number one on his list of goals, which he keeps prominently displayed on his bathroom wall, is the 2012 Olympic games in London.
“That’s my huge goal,” said Reynolds, who has U.S. and Olympic flags hanging in his bedroom. “It would be a dream come true.”
It’s a dream that begin 10 years ago when Reynolds’ mother was dragging him to his sister’s swim team practices.
“The coach saw him just sitting beside the pool watching and felt sorry for him,” said Brian Reynolds, Doug’s Dad. “So she offered to let him join in free of charge.”
But two weeks later, Doug’s parents received a call one night from the coach.
“She apologized but said that she was going to have to start charging us for Doug,” Brian said. “She said he was beating half the kids on the team.”
Little has changed since then, except that Doug is now beating half the kids in the country.
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