CALLING THE SHOTS:

So just when does an Olympic dream begin?

For Aaron Peirsol, it began at age 7 when his family took a trip to Florida. They visited the U.S. Swimming Hall of Fame in Fort Lauderdale. While there, the young Peirsol made a promise to his mother, Wella.

He told her he would break a world record and later become inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Eighteen years later, he’s the world-record holder in the 100-meter backstroke (52.89 seconds) and shares the world’s top time in the 200 back (1 minute, 54.32 seconds). At these Olympics, he has the opportunity to make himself a lock for The Hall, though I already think he is.

Knowing Aaron, he’ll take full advantage of this chance.

I first met Aaron in the summer of 2000 before he went to Australia to compete in the Olympics. He was a bright kid who said all the right things and showed true respect for his rival/friend Lenny Krayzelburg.

Aaron won the silver medal in the 200 back at the 2000 Olympics, but most people knew he was merely at the starting line with regard to what he was capable of accomplishing.

Before the 2004 Olympics, he unseated Krayzelburg and became the backstroke king. At Athens, he won gold in the 100 back, 200 back and 400 individual medley relay.

But that’s all the stuff you know. You also might know that for most of his career he’s been described as laid back. Most of the time that annoyed Aaron, though he never showed it. He thought that description made it seem as if he was not mentally strong enough to be the greatest backstroke swimmer ever. He had those type of goals when he was in high school at Newport Harbor.

Laid back could have been a proper way to describe Aaron when he competed for the Sailors. Sure he took the meets seriously, but he was so carefree when competing with his high school teammates. That’s really when he had that surfer-dude mentality going.

Still, he won. Race after race, he produced awe from swimming fans, yet all he did in between events was laugh and tell jokes with his friends, or even chat it up with a Daily Pilot reporter.

He would always, always ask me how I was doing, and sometimes ask that question twice because my first answer wasn’t detailed enough. Give me something to write about, I would joke with him.

He sometimes took it seriously.

At Newport Harbor, Aaron is remembered as Olympic swimmer, three-time gold medalist and one of the greatest athletes to ever come out of the school (because you can’t forget about Misty May-Treanor). At Newport Harbor, Aaron is also remembered as the extremely nice young man who led the Sailors to their first and only CIF team title in swimming in 2002, his senior year.

He won two events and contributed to two victorious relays. He left as a four-time CIF champ in the 100-yard backstroke.

It almost seemed as if he was toying with the competition. Even when he answered some of my questions, he acted as if he was just having a good time. But there was truth to all his answers, even to the simple questions.

Why did you get into swimming?

“I like the water and I was good at a young age,” he said. “I was really competitive at that age. I also love the beach and I can never argue with winning.”

You could always take Aaron seriously when it came to swimming, even at a young age. Can you imagine a 7-year-old predicting that he would break world records and become a U.S. Swimming Hall of Fame inductee?

Most people would have laughed off the comment because it came from a kid. But Wella never even chuckled. She believed him. He proved her right, even when big-time challenges came his way, first in the form of Krayzelburg. Then he had to battle a tough case of mononucleosis while training for the 2004 Olympics. And, now there’s Ryan Lochte.

That’s the guy who beat Aaron last year. Lochte won the 200 back and set a new world record at the world championships. But Aaron showed he’s still the backstroke king when he won the 200 back at the U.S. Olympic Trials last month.

It was one of the closest races at the trials. The two swam stroke for stroke throughout until Aaron lunged to the wall to win. He finished in 1:54.32, while Lochte touched in 1:54.34.

It should be a close race again. The winner will most likely need to break the world record to win the 200 back on Thursday.

The event won’t get as much press as Michael Phelps’ quest for eight golds, but that matters little to Aaron. Phelps is No. 3 on Time magazine’s list of 100 Olympic athletes to watch, 41-year-old swimmer Dara Torres is No. 2 (Lebron James is No. 1). Aaron is No. 41, but that doesn’t matter to him. He in China to win and cement himself as the best backstroke swimmer of all time.

Aaron begins his quest today to sweep the backstroke events with the 100 back (the finals are on Monday). He could become the second swimmer in history to sweep the backstroke titles in consecutive Olympics.

It all started with a promise made to a mother during a trip to Florida.

STEVE VIRGEN may be reached at (714) 966-4616 or by e-mail at [email protected].