Beisel’s 400 IM in Atlanta Was a Confidence Booster (Full Video)

Two-time Olympic medalist Elizabeth Beisel gave a press conference earlier today at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Nebraska to debrief before the U.S. Olympic Team Swimming Trials begin on Sunday.

She started off the conference by recapping her 4th-fastest-in-the-world 400 IM (4:33.55) at the Atlanta Pro Swim.

“I definitely needed that performance in Atlanta,” she said. “I think it helped my confidence a lot coming into the Olympic Trials, but that being said you can’t ever really count anybody out, especially at this meet. There are a lot of up-and-comers that can come out of nowhere and sort of surprise you, so you sorta just have to worry about yourself and not think about anybody else and just take care of what you have to do. But, yeah, it was a long journey back to swimming fast, definitely hard, but, you know, it’s good to be back, for sure.”

That performance capped off Beisel’s long journey to recovery after her leg injury in early 2015.

Beisel also addressed the issue of doping in Olympic sports, expressing confidence that the U.S. team will be clear of performance enhancers.

“There is definitely a lot of talk, but, you know, I’m 100% confident that the U.S. Olympic Team will be 100% clean; there is no doubt in my mind,” she said. “And it is sad that some athletes, no matter what sport you’re in, are choosing to dope. Athletics are so amazing you just want to all be on the same playing field and just compete against each other and just race; that’s what it’s all about, and it’s sad that it’s been taken a step further into using drugs and cheating, but, you know, I can’t control what anybody else does, so I’m just going to sorta have to worry about myself and take care of myself and hopefully perform the best that I can.”

Beisel also talked about her silver medal in London, where China’s 16-year-old Ye Shiwen blasted past her for the gold, coming home in a faster-than-Lochte’s-final-split 58.68 that had many eyebrows raised.

“I think that I wish I could have come home in a 57! You know? Then I would have won!” she said with a laugh. “You can’t change what’s already happened. I’m not going to dwell on it. I think an Olympic silver medal is awesome. I would be crazy if I weren’t grateful for that. It was a true reflection of the work that I had done and the honest work that I had done, and, you know, if that was the best that I had that day, then that’s what it was. It happens.”

Beisel is slated to swim nine events this weekend, although she most likely will be scratching a few of them. She is a top contender in the 400 IM and the 200 backstroke, both events in which she won Olympic medals in 2012.

You can see the full transcript of the press conference here.