Olympic gold medalist Regan Smith brings the precious metal home to Minnesota

Regan Smith returned home for the first time since the COVID-19 shutdown to talk about her hope of making the U.S. Olympic teams for Los Angeles and Sydney, her training routine, crying during a high school algebra test, her must-have pizza topping and her favorite gifts from Kim Kardashian.

The Lakeville native and two-time swimming Olympian visited her alma mater, Lakeville North High School, on Tuesday after having won two gold medals, three silvers and setting a world record in the 100 backstroke at the Paris Games in August.

Smith, 22, also made a TikTok video with two students, including interlocutor McKenna Parris, and received a proclamation from Lakeville Mayor Luke Hellier proclaiming “Regan Smith Day” in the southern suburb.

She told the 60-some students in the classroom and others watching to soak up the high school experience. A self-described homebody, Smith said she wishes she’d enjoyed high school more.

“I went to three football games,” she said, adding that she didn’t go to dances or parties. “I wish I had enjoyed more of that stuff.”

She encouraged students to enjoy their classes and to build relationships with teachers and classmates.

She recalled that in ninth grade, she missed two weeks of algebra for an international swim competition and she did not do the homework. When she returned to a quiz on her first day back, Smith said she sat at her desk crying, but she ultimately appreciated her teacher’s tough-love approach.

“I really respect him a lot for being like, ‘I expect you guys to be responsible,’” she said. (She persevered and eventually passed AP Calculus, among other advanced classes.)

Smith said the Paris Olympics were a lot of fun and a world of difference from the Tokyo games during the pandemic where fans weren’t permitted, athletes had to be masked when not competing and athletes ate their meals with plastic dividers between them. The cardboard beds in the Olympic Village in Paris, however, were not particularly comfortable.

But Team U.S.A. saved the best for last, winning gold in the women’s 400-meter medley relay in the final event of the swimming competition. Smith set a world record with her backstroke lead-off.

“We went out with a big bang this time,” she said.

Experiencing that with her teammates and hearing the national anthem from the top of the podium qualified as her highlight. Smith also won three individual silvers in the two backstroke events and the 200 butterfly.

After her family had to watch the Tokyo Games remotely from their Lakeville homes, she described how great it was to have them in Paris.

“Getting to hug them during the medal ceremony was so special,” she said.

The swimmer is on a break now before training ramps up in January, and she will head for a three-stop World Cup competition in China, Korea and Singapore before going to Budapest for World Championships.

Even Olympians face burnout and struggle for motivation, so Smith is pacing herself. She confessed that her alarm Tuesday morning was set for 5:30 a.m. for a swim, but when it went off, she said, “nope” and went back to sleep, getting up three hours later.

“I’m definitely going to take my time before training ramps up again,” she said.

Despite the piles of medals and records, Smith said she’s most proud of the development of her mental relationship with swimming. Smith, who still holds 80 Minnesota swimming records, got her start at age 8, swimming with Apple Valley’s Riptide Swim Club. As a youngster, it was easy to enjoy swimming as she was winning all the time.

As she rose to the international level, it grew harder. With her eye now on the Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028 and Sydney in 2032, she’s focused on the journey, not the podium.

“I had to realize you’re not always going to win,” she said, “so how can you still feel satisfaction and contentment?” A couple of years ago, she said, she would have been “crushed” at not receiving an individual gold in Paris, but this time it didn’t taint her Olympic experience.

Acknowledging that it’s “easier said than done,” Smith said she’s learned to take satisfaction from things that aren’t performance-based, such as the close friendships she’s built with other swimmers, including her roommate Kate Douglass, who swims for the University of Virginia and also brought home a haul of hardware from Paris, including gold in the 200 breaststroke.

Smith was only in town for a few days and her schedule was packed. She had another session set for Wednesday at Lakeville South High School. She’s to throw out the first pitch at Target Field on Wednesday night and planned a stop at Foss Swim Schools, one of her sponsors.

She’s in the process of moving from Tempe, Ariz., to Austin, Texas, to follow coach Bob Bowman to train at the University of Texas. She and her father, Paul, head to Texas to meet the moving trucks later this week.

The swimmer is also set to receive her second Olympic tattoo, a custom design with a Parisian flair from Alisha Perkins at the Asylum in Lakeville. Smith already has Tokyo 2021 on her wrist.

On lighter matters, Smith told the students her favorite Olympic gift items came from Kardashian’s Skims clothing line, including a robe and bathing suit. Smith said she posted a photo in them and that Kardashian “liked” the post. “I died,” Smith said.

She knows it’s controversial, but said she must have pineapple on her pizza, a favorite after-school snack in high school. The students wanted to know the most famous person on her cellphone: Smith said Jake Paul, an American YouTuber, actor, and professional boxer. She was on his podcast in Paris.

The students asked about her superstitions and pre-race meals. Smith said she tries to go with the flow but brings her ten-year-old pink Crocs to every meet as a tradition.

And yes, she has peed in the pool. “I think everyone has,” she said, adding that yes, it’s disgusting but the coaches don’t let swimmers out during practice.