University of Michigan athlete swims to Paris Olympics despite pain

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Elite athletes are incredibly focused and driven to compete at the highest level and sometimes overcome great obstacles to succeed, especially for a University of Michigan Swimmer who buys her ticket to Paris while battling a serious health problem.

Stephanie Balduccini is one of the bravest athletes you will ever meet. A health emergency nearly caused her to miss her chance to compete in Paris, but she came out on top again and is now heading to the Olympic Games for the second time.

Some athletes spend their entire lives fighting for a place in the Olympics. That’s not the case for Balduccini, who some call Brazil’s swimming prodigy.

At 16, Balduccini was the youngest Brazilian athlete to compete in the Olympic Games.

The University of Michigan freshman returns with the Brazilian relay team on its way to Paris.

“People ask me what the difference is between me in 2021 and me in 2024, and honestly not much has changed,” Balduccini said. “Honestly not much has changed. I just think the love for the love of the sport has grown.”

Competing in the Olympics is always a challenge and Balduccini’s second attempt was twice as difficult as Brazil’s swimming qualifiers, which presented some difficulties.

“I had really bad stomach pains that I thought were probably food poisoning, but the pain just kept getting worse,” Balduccini said. “So I finally went to the hospital. My friends took me there and it turned out I had appendicitis, which is not something you want to hear two weeks before an Olympic qualifier.”

Despite her diagnosis, Balduccini continued.

“Since it didn’t burst, you have the choice of taking it out, not taking part in the Olympic qualifying competitions or taking antibiotics,” Balduccini said. “It was a risky decision because a lot could have gone wrong. It turned out that the antibiotics didn’t have the full effect, so I was in a lot of pain.”

Balduccini’s swimming despite all the pain paid off and he earned a spot on the team.

“I was crying because I was so relieved that I had qualified,” said Balduccini. “The time wasn’t good, but it didn’t matter at that point. I thought I just have to get my wins and this is one of them.”

After I was cleared to compete in the Olympics, my appendix finally came out.

“She had a lot to deal with physically and emotionally. The fact that she was able to overcome all of that by flying to Brazil, performing under pressure again and making the team was incredible,” said Matt Bowe, University of Michigan swim coach.

Her recovery is progressing as Balduccini returns to the world stage, having spent the last few months preparing for Paris.

“I love challenges, and I think this was a big challenge to face,” Balduccini said. “One thing I learned from appendicitis is that you can’t just give up when times get really tough, or get angry when things don’t go the way you want them to.”

A tattoo on her arm commemorates this last Olympic trip, which she made with her parents’ permission.

But in Paris, Balduccini said she wanted a new souvenir besides ink.

“Winning a medal is definitely a goal,” Balduccini said. “I think especially in 2028 it’s an even bigger goal and that would mean the world to me.”

And in case you’re wondering, Balduccini’s appendix did come out after all. It was removed right after the attempts and she said she was glad it all worked out.