Biography

Adam Ritter just missed qualifying for the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials. Three years later, he was winning medals for Team USA at his first international meet, the 2007 World University Games. At that meet in Bangkok, Thailand, Adam led the U.S. squad with five medals, including three gold. He won the 200m free in a meet record time and also took silver in the 100m free.

Adam’s performance at the World University Games has established him as a contender for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team. Besides his success in individual events, he’s also proven his value as a relay competitor helping the U.S. to two golds and one silver on the World University Games relays. He also anchored four NCAA championship relays during his collegiate career at the University of Arizona.

A fifth-year Civil Engineering student at the University of Arizona, Adam has shown yearly improvement in his swimming. He went from a little-known freshman to an individual NCAA champion by his senior year, winning the 200 individual medley as a senior in 2007. That summer, he qualified for the World University Games team by taking eighth in both the 100m and 200m free at the U.S. National Championships.

Transcending Sport

Adam is a prime example of the “student” part of student-athlete, holding a 3.13 GPA as a Civil Engineering major at the University of Arizona. He was a member of the 2006 and 2007 All-Academic Pacific-10 Conference Team and given the Sapphire Award as the University of Arizona’s Top Male Student-Athlete in 2007.

Adam is also keenly aware of the fragility of an athletic career, and indeed of life itself. As a high school junior, he suffered a stress fracture in his back that doctors initially thought would not only end his athletic career, but could also lead to trouble just walking later in life. Luckily for him, the injury turned out to be less serious than first thought and he recovered before season’s end. But Adam’s familiarity with a more serious health problem stems from a condition his father and uncles suffer from – deep vein thrombosis.

Adam has watched his father give up activities he once enjoyed like jogging and riding his bike because of the blood thinning medication and the threat of injury. However, Adam has also seen him become more health conscious, improving his blood pressure, weight and overall general fitness. Deep vein thrombosis can be hereditary, so Adam wants to make sure he learns more about the symptoms and causes for his own future health, and he also hopes to raise awareness of the condition.