‘I did it for him’: Drexel’s Sebastian Smith qualifies for Olympics Trials in honor of his late coach

Moments after a race in mid-July, Sebastian Smith looked up at the clock. The rising sophomore at Drexel knew exactly what time he needed to qualify for the Olympic Trials in the 100-meter butterfly, and when he saw his time of 53.51 seconds, just .08 seconds below the mark, he immediately knew he did it.

Smith began slapping the water in celebration while his group of supporters — his “true inner circle,” as he put it — were celebrating and crying. Everyone’s emotions were high, but not just because Smith was heading to the trails.

About four months before Smith qualified, his longtime coach Marc Rizzo died suddenly.

“[Everyone there] knew how much that moment had meant, more so not just because I had made the cut, but it was just like, I did it for him,” Smith said over the phone in October. “It was like a very proud moment. Everyone’s like bawling their eyes out and then I’m over here slapping the water because I’m so excited, but in my head, that’s all I’m thinking about, too.”

Rizzo began coaching Smith when he was 5 years old, and was his coach until he died, with the exception of a four-year span in there. According to Smith, when he returned to the Rizzo-coached Patriot Swim Team, that’s when he developed speed. Smith said Rizzo tried out a new training style, and it working really well for him.

But the relationship between the two was more than just business. They had a really close bond. Smith referred to Rizzo as “my second father, a lifelong companion, … basically can’t characterize how much he meant to me.”

He added, “It’s like an uncategorized relationship, or it’s just unspoken. It’s crazy, I have like, one to two pictures with him, but it’s like that is probably the most impactful person in my life.”

When Rizzo died, Bob Vializ, who once coached the club team and was director since 2003 before retiring in April 2022, came out of retirement to take over the program, and he focused on helping Smith get to the trials.

After Smith qualified for the trials, he knew he deserved some type of reward. So that night, he had a big meal.

“Probably wasn’t good because my meet wasn’t over yet, but I had Chick-fil-A because I just really wanted something to celebrate,” he said. “Me and my mom just got Chick-fil-A, like three sandwiches or something crazy. And then I just went to bed because I still wanted to do well the rest of the weekend, so I still had to kind of lock it in.”

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But once the meet was over, Smith dove into his love for candy as a true celebration.

“This is probably the most ironic thing,” Smith said, “like being like, I guess an elite athlete, and my downfall would probably be candy. Like it’s so bad. I really try to pull back.”

And his interest in candy isn’t surface-level.

“I like the Swedish Fish Friends, so they have like watermelon and strawberry,” Smith said. “The different Sour Patch flavors, so like the strawberry, the peach, the grape. I’ve really been getting into Twix Cookies & Cream and regular Twix. My friend just put me onto the Lifesavers, which I also think are pretty good. Occasionally, I’ll throw in some like Sour Skittles in there. I love a good Reese’s Cup bag, or the Outrageous Bar with the caramel and the Reese’s Peanut Butter Pieces in it, I really liked those, too.”

Smith first started swimming when he was age 3 and began the sport competitively when he was 5. He became the first male swimmer in Drexel history to qualify for the Olympic Trials, but he doesn’t want to just qualify for one event. He said he’s also looking to make it for the 100 freestyle and 100 breaststroke.

“I think it’s every kid’s dream. I want to go to the Olympics like Michael Phelps did,” Smith said. “But me and my friend would always just joke about like, Olympic Trials is cool. I feel like, in our sport, that’s the epitome. You’re at that top level but you’re not the one or two person that makes the Olympics. That’s like one of the biggest achievements in our sport.”

The trials don’t start until June 15, 2024, and Smith said right now he doesn’t really have any expectations other than focusing on the college season.

“For me, this is a chance not a lot of people get,” he said,” So really, take advantage of it I think is the biggest thing.”