Manuel Reveals Burnout Diagnosis After Loss at Swim Trials

Tears welled in Simone Manuel’s eyes. Her voice broke as she revealed the heartbreaking reason behind her failure to advance in the 100-meter freestyle at the U.S. Olympic trials.

The first Black woman ever to win an individual swimming gold medal at the Olympics was diagnosed with overtraining syndrome — or burnout — in late March. She’d never heard of it before. Her mother looked up the condition online. At first, Manuel modified her training at Stanford for two weeks.

“I wasn’t seeing any progress with my performance in the pool,” she said Thursday night. “It actually was declining.”

Read AP News