Teams: Men's Swimming & Diving: Press Releases

Tuesday, February 6, 2007

MEET ALL-AMERICAN AND TUFTS RECORD HOLDER GREG BETTENCOURT

In the Tufts men's swimming & diving team's final meet of the regular-season last weekend (Feb. 2-3) at MIT, senior co-captain Greg Bettencourt (West Granby, CT/Westminster School) swam a Jumbo record in the 1,000 freestyle by more than 18 seconds with a time of 9 minutes, 36.06 seconds. An individual and relay All-American on last year's team that placed 10th nationally, Greg is the fifth member of his family to swim at Tufts.

With the NESCAC Championship meet coming up February 23-25, and the NCAA Championships following on March 15-17, Bettencourt and the rest of head coach Adam Hoyt's Jumbos are hoping to recreate the magic of last year and then some.

In Focus got in touch with Greg recently to get to know one of the best swimmers in the history of the Jumbo program:

Last year was one of the best seasons in the team's history with a tenth place finish at the NCAA Championships. How is this year shaping up as the championship season approaches?

GB - Last year was an incredible ride from start to finish. We had known from very early on in the year that we had a special group of guys that had the talent and ambition to push each other above and beyond our season goals. I still get chills when I think back at the way the team came together at the NESCAC championship meet. The energy we had on that deck was paralleled only by the rest of the team, parents, and fans that were in the stands cheering us on in a roar of Jumbo pride. It was incredible, and certainly no mistake that we broke 10 school records at that meet and sent seven guys to Minnesota for the NCAA Championship meet where we broke five more school records on our way to the 10th place finish.

As this season approached, I couldn't help but wonder how the team would react given the huge act it had to follow. This team has stepped up to the challenge very well. From very early on the guys decided that nothing would be taken for granted this year and that we would need to bring even more intensity to practices and meets. The class of 2010 has proven to be a great addition to the team in both talent and attitude, filling the shoes of last year's graduating class very well. Coming off our two-week training trip in Fort Lauderdale and our dual meets, I am very confident that we will once again turn heads at our championship meets. This team has the best chemistry of any in my four years here and guys are swimming incredibly well in competition despite the intense training we are still doing. I can't wait to see what happens when the guys are rested and shaved for the most exciting meets of the season.

You were part of the 800 freestyle relay that was fourth at Nationals last year, and individually you swam eighth in the 500 freestyle. What are the goals for the relays and yourself this winter?

GB - Stepping onto the awards podium last March with an All-American trophy in hand is an honor that I will never forget. I had always been the kind of guy that admired those who were able to compete at the national level, but was embarrassed to admit that my goal was to get there too some day. I consider myself lucky to have had the chance to compete under coach Hoyt, who made it clear without a doubt that hard work and attention to details would put me beyond even my own silent goals.

Throughout my swimming career I have approached each new season personally with the goal of being faster than last year. This season is no different. While places and points are nice rewards, I will be most satisfied if I can say with confidence that I made the necessary adjustments this year to be better than I have in any season prior.

If there is one thing I have learned since joining the Tufts team four years ago though, it's that the greatest joy in sport is earned from the sum of all the team's parts, not individual successes. The history, pride and camaraderie of the Tufts Men's Swim Team is something above and beyond anything else I have experienced in my athletic career. From the earliest days as a freshman on this team I knew that I was a part of something special, something bigger than just the 45 members of that year's roster. Being part of the national team last year brought me great joy in being able to help extend the Tufts tradition of success to the national level. My goal for this season is much the same. I believe we can increase our showing at the national meet greater than last year's seven guys. There would be no greater reward to leave this season standing on the All-American podium with my teammates knowing that we have solidified the Tufts program as a significant player at the national level.

What attracted you to Tufts coming from Westminster?

GB - My father (Don Bettencourt E'72), and two older brothers (Brian Bettencourt E'01, Jeff Bettencourt E'99) each went to Tufts, so from an early age it was a joke among friends and family that I would follow the path of the Jumbo some day as well. Growing up, however, my parents encouraged me to have an open mind about where I would attend college and it wasn't until I had my turn at the traditional college search that I decided Tufts was the only choice for me.

It's ironic to think that the first real impression of Tufts came at the hand of the Tufts Men's Swim team. My brother Brian was a member of that team and I still remember attending some of his home meets. In those days before I was a swimmer I could tell by watching those meets that Brian was a part of something special. I remember watching him and his teammates' on the deck of Hamilton Pool and I remember thinking that I too wanted to be a part of something like that someday. I remember sitting in Coach Megerle's (the men's team coach for 33 years who my father, Brian, and I eventually swam for my freshman year) office being distracted by the hundreds of pictures of Tufts swimming through the ages that covered every available surface in the room. I remember thinking what an incredible coach he seemed to be and what an honor it must be to swim for him. At the time I thought to myself that every college must have something like this, and that all I had to do was wait my turn a few years down the road.

Years later when I looked at colleges I was surprised to find that what I had always assumed as status quo was not at all the case. After having some success with swimming at Westminster I had decided that I would most likely want to continue the sport through college. I looked at several schools and talked to several coaches with mixed results. Tufts was the last school I looked at. When I sat down in Coach Megerle's office for the first time as a prospective swimmer I was blown away by what I had seen hints of earlier. If I wanted to swim in college, it was clear to me that no other program I looked at could come close to matching the history, traditions, pride, camaraderie, and coaching talent that the Tufts Men's team had.

I knew that college was much more than just a swim team though, so I made a point to compare it thoroughly with the other colleges I was looking at. I was pretty sure that I wanted to be an engineer, but I really liked how Tufts had both the Engineering and Liberal Arts schools on one campus, allowing a greater breadth of available courses and the confidence that I could change majors if I decided that engineering was not for me. I also found that having both schools on one campus made for a much more socially diverse campus than many of the Engineering-only schools I had looked at.

I also liked the Tufts' proximity to Boston, just far enough outside to allow for a spacious campus with fields and a quad but close enough to make Boston easily available. Tufts' size was optimal; coming from a small New England prep school I liked the idea of having more people on campus than you could ever know the names of while still remaining small enough to keep class sizes small, allowing for one on one attention with professors.

Besides swimming, what other activities do you participate in at Tufts? What's are some of your favorite things about Tufts?

GB - I'm a big fan of the intramurals at Tufts. Throughout my childhood leading up to Tufts, baseball was my favorite sport and large part of my life. I get jealous every spring when I see the baseball team out on their field for the first time, so our intramural softball team is a good way to get rid of that baseball energy. I also play intramural basketball, but that's more to humor the guys who say I have the talent and size to play. I'm really not that good.

I have always thought Tufts was a special place. Boston is such a great college town with so much going on and Tufts' proximity to it is excellent. I really like the contrast of being able to walk around the open air campus that has enough grass to remind you of home, but still be able to hop on the T and in a few minutes arrive in the middle of downtown Boston. It's a perfect combination.

As a mechanical engineering major, what are your specific career aspirations at this time?

As much as I thought it would never come, I have finally come to the realization that I am on the doorstep of life after Tufts. I have begun the job search process and while I admit that the final decision will be a daunting one, I feel that Tufts has prepared me well for the next step. With so much going on, Boston is a great place to be an engineer so I plan to stay in the area for a few years and begin my career. I have long known that I would like to someday take a management roll in a company or a start-up of my own, so I may return to academia in a few years and work towards an MBA or engineering management degree. Regardless, I am excited for what the future holds.

Previous Jumbo Athletes In Focus:

Khalilah Ummah - Women's Basketball

Cat Beck - Women's Track & Field

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