Lilly King isn’t swimming a lot these days. After years in the spotlight and with her time in constant demand, the six-time Olympic medalist retired after her last race Aug. 3 at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore. Now, “I’m going to be bored for a while,” she says from her home in Bloomington, Indiana. Back from a recent Maine vacation with her fiancé James Wells, King tells Evansville Living what she misses most — and least — about swimming, her proudest achievements, and what’s next down the lane.
Editor’s note: This Q&A is an expanded version of the interview with Lilly King appearing in the September/October 2025 issue.
How is your body adjusting to not training now?
I’ve just started my running journey. I’m walking my dogs and going for casual runs. I’m not terribly sore right now. I’ve got about two months until our wedding, so I need to stay in shape. [laughs] But finding the new normal, that’s been the theme.
To become what many consider the greatest female breaststroker in history, what gave you that extra edge? Was it technique, practice, or simply outworking your competitors?
It was a little bit of everything. Maybe this is more typical of American athletes than European athletes, but I never pigeonholed myself into one event. Originally, I was a sprint breaststroker. When I came up in the NCAA, my 200 got better, and that became my signature event. But I never wanted to be just one thing. I trained too hard to be just a sprinter! And the work I put in practice was reflected in my races.
When you were 12, you won your first individual state championship. How did that compare, at the time, with later winning your first individual Olympic medal?
It was a pretty similar reaction and feelings. I’d been swimming for five years — almost half my life — and I’d never really won anything big, and that was the first time I felt that I’d accomplished what I thought I could do. That was a life-changing swim for me. For 4-5 years, I’d practiced and worked and worked. Winning the state title was the coolest thing that had ever happened to me. I walked into the pool thinking I was the best thing on planet earth. The Olympic win was life-changing in a different way. At that point, especially that year, I was on a roll. Every time I hit the water, I did something incredible, and what a blessing that was. After that, my lifestyle changed. I had money; I hadn’t had sponsorships before. I had people who wanted to talk to me every moment of every day. I was giving interviews 4-5 times a week and making appearances every weekend. I was still going to school. Instead of being the one chasing, I was the one being chased.
Is there one moment in your career that stands out as your greatest moment, and is there one moment that stands out as the most disappointing?
Greatest … it’s hard to nail down just one that’s my favorite. Winning in Rio was amazing — my first Olympic win was cool. Setting the world record in Budapest is up there, too. The most disappointing was getting the bronze medal in Tokyo. That kind of broke me for a while. But then I came back three days later and won silver in one of the best races in my career.
How much did you enjoy sharing your career and success with your parents and brother?
We’re not a very sentimental family. We just go through life and take everything in stride. But at my last race at Nationals in Indianapolis, they were all there: my aunt and uncle, my grandmother, my friends. We all went out to dinner after my race, and it was such a cool moment having all the people I love together. Having them there celebrating me was really special. They’ve 100 percent been part of my journey.
How did you like competing as a team member for Indiana University vs. as a team member for the USA? What was alike? What was different?
I was a Junior Team USA member before college, so it was less of a transition. That’s what I was used to. Going pro was very different and not my favorite thing. I was used to racing and competing a lot with a team. The fall after my senior year of college, we had the International Swimming League, so I did kind of have an outlet immediately after college that was similar to collegiate swimming. After ISL went under, it wasn’t fun because there are not many swim meets throughout the year. There are hardly any racing opportunities until maybe January or March. I’m wanting to find more options for pro swimmers to compete.
What will you miss the most and the least about staring at lane lines?
I’ll miss the people, especially my coaches at IU and the staff and teammates with Team USA. I have been through a lot of things with them in the last 10-12 years. What I’ll miss the least is my body hurting all the time! I get to do whatever I want now. I’m not on the clock 24/7. Recently, I got to drive up to Indianapolis to have dinner and drinks with a friend, and I couldn’t do that before because I always had to practice.
How long do you think it will be until you want to do just fitness laps?
Oh, geez. It’s going to be a while. I want to miss it for a little while. I haven’t touched a pool since Aug. 3. Before, I had nine swims a week at two hours each. Every day but Sunday. My fiancé is a retired swimmer and only swims in the summer outside. He calls himself a fair-weather athlete, so maybe some of that will rub off on me! [laughs]
What are your next career steps? What are you looking forward to in your next chapter: marriage, where you’ll live, how you’ll make a living?
I don’t really know! That’s kind of the beauty in this. I’m going to be bored for a while. Lots of people figure out what they want to do when they’re 18-23. Now, I’m going to figure out what I like to do. I’m doing weekend swim clinics for club teams, doing some public speaking. I’ve been very fortunate making a living swimming, so I’m good for a bit. I’ll live in Bloomington for the next year. My fiancé is applying for an astrophysics fellowship program, so wherever he’s accepted, that’s where we’ll go next!
Have you accomplished what you wanted to in swimming?
I definitely accomplished everything several years ago. All T’s are crossed and I’s are dotted.
If you’d not been a swimmer and had pursued another sport, what would it have been? If you could do it all over again, would you still choose swimming?
I did every other sport growing up, and I just didn’t like them much! The only thing that would have given me the satisfaction of walking into a stadium with 20,000 people screaming my name would be if I were a pop star. I did want to be Hannah Montana for a while. But I can’t sing! But it took me 12 years to get where I am in swimming, so maybe in another 12 years, I can be a pop star!
