SELISKAR Andrew

General
TURNING POINT
A skateboarding injury he suffered in 2017 made him rethink his swimming career, and proved to be a turning point. "I think last summer [2017] was a big turning point for me. I was forced to take some time out of the water. I knew it was make-or-break for me. I could either finish out my career and be all right, or I could try to push through it and have a big breakthrough swim. I don't want to say I had been taking swimming for granted a little bit, but I feel like every day when I hit the water it was like, 'I'm really, really happy to be swimming in college', and [I'm happy] to be able to keep swimming, just because it's something I love." (swimmingworldmagazine.com, 04 Mar 2019; swimmingworldmagazine.com, 02 Dec 2018)

VERSATILITY
He says he likes all events but feels most comfortable swimming the individual medley [IM]. "I always look to have a ton of variety in whatever I am doing, in and out of the pool, just to keep things fresh and exciting. I've always been an IM swimmer, but having the opportunity to train with Cal [University of California] has allowed me to get more specific with my event profile and really develop my own race strategies, which I find really exciting. The 200m freestyle is definitely a new event for me in long course. It was an event that I had always wanted give more focus. Heading into 2018 [US] nationals, my freestyle was moving really well in training, and I felt that I had a shot to contend for that national title. [Cal coaches] Dave Durden and Chase Kreitler really helped me make improvements to my freestyle technique, and I was excited to branch out and get experience in that event." (usaswimming.org, 12 Oct 2018)

MUSICAL MAN
He plays guitar and has formed several garage bands, including one called Seahorse Yesterday with his brother and friends, and one called Sather Lane with fellow swimmer Carson Sand. He also draws inspiration from music that US swimmer Michael Phelps was known to listen to. "I started listening to Young Jeezy a lot because I read an article that said Phelps listened to that in 2008. I knew some of the songs, so I have those on my playlist." (swimswam.com, 01 Sep 2019; swimswam.com, 29 Mar 2019; usaswimming.org, 12 Oct 2018; me.berkeley.edu, 12 Feb 2017)