An athlete of remarkable endurance and drive, twelve-time Olympic medalist Dara Torres is the first American swimmer to have competed in five Olympics. Torres began swimming at age seven and by her teens was competing for the Mission Viejo Nadadores. She attended the University of Florida on a swimming scholarship, graduating in 1990 with a BA in telecommunications. In her first Olympic games, in 1984, she won a gold medal for the 100–meter relay. She went on to compete in the 1988, 1992, 2000, and 2008 Olympics, winning five medals in 2000, more than anyone else on her team. In 2008, as the oldest–ever female Olympic swimmer at age 41 (and having given birth only a year earlier), she won two silver medals for 100-meter medley relay and 50–meter freestyle, breaking the American freestyle record she had set at age fifteen. Over the course of her career, she won four gold, four silver, and four bronze medals at the Olympics and broke the American record speeds for 50–meter freestyle ten times, more than any American swimmer in any event. Torres was inducted into the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame in 2019 in recognition of her accomplishments. She has worked as a reporter and sports commentator for NBC, ESPN, and the Fox News Channel, among others, along with having an active career as a motivational speaker. In 2019, she joined CaniBrands, a CBD brand that promotes sports fitness and wellness products, as Chief Wellness Officer. She has also become an advocate against practices in sports that promote unhealthy body image, coming forward in 2021 about her struggle with an eating disorder during her time at the University of Florida. In 2024, she began a new career as the Head Swimming and Diving Coach at Boston College.