When Conor Dwyer heads to a meet there’s one thing his family said he always looks for.
“He is always looking for us when he gets to the meet,” said his younger brother Brendan Dwyer. “He knows where we are sitting and it’s fun celebrating together.”
And as Dwyer heads for what will likely be his biggest meet this year at the upcoming Olympic games in Rio, he will undoubtedly have one of the largest and most vocal cheering sections.
“Once he is swimming, everyone is screaming and everyone is looking at us like we are kind of crazy, but it is awesome having us all together,” said his younger sister Patti Dwyer.
For generations, swimming has been a family affair for the Dwyers.
“My mom swam in college,” Conor Dwyer said. “She was an All American swimmer so she taught us how to swim in my grandparent’s backyard pool.”
But not all of Dwyer’s siblings went on to become Olympic athletes.
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“We lasted a couple of years,” said PJ Dwyer. “Conor is the only one that stuck it out and it looks like it worked out pretty well for him.”
Dwyer was considered a late bloomer in the sport. It wasn’t until his junior year in college, after he transferred to Florida and grew six inches, that his potential was realized.
“That is when we knew this was his calling,” said his mother Jeanne Dwyer.
In 2012, Dwyer qualified for the London Olympics, reaching the podium with of the biggest names in the sport as a member of the relay team.
“I was 23 on the relay at the time, being with Michael [Phelps], Ryan [Lochte], Ricky [Berens] – all veterans on our Olympic squad – was an amazing experience,” he said.
Now, in 2016, Dwyer is himself one of the veterans on Team USA and he has his sights set on not only on a winning another relay medal, but also grabbing his first individual medal as well.
“I still have some unfinished business in the sport that I am looking forward to accomplishing in Rio,” he said.
