By Kevin Nix and Patrick Schneider, Cronkite PR Lab
Charli Brown is no stranger to the world of swimming. Hailing from Sydney, Australia, she began swimming competitively at age 8. Brown knew from a young age that swimming was the sport for her.
“I just loved it,” Brown said. “I loved being with my brothers and then made so many friends. [I] just kept going with my swimming lessons and went from there.”
When picking a university, she leaned on those she knew, such as Molly Batchelor, to help her make the decision. More than anything else, however, it was the ASU Sun Devils’ coaching staff that wowed her.
“The coaches here really made an impact,” Brown said. “They made me feel like I was already a part of the team as soon as we spoke. They got me in contact with the girls (on the team) straight away. I had one Zoom call with a couple of the girls and I just knew that this is where I belonged. I just knew this was the place to come to.”
Brown felt valued by her coaches and future teammates from the beginning. Her confidence that everyone would take her in and treat her as family was a major part of her choosing ASU.
The coaches and teammates she’s met are not the only prominent aspects of her move to the U.S. and to ASU. Swimming competitively differs in the two countries, and Brown is happy there are other people from Australia on the swim team to help with the adjustment.
“I'm glad there are other Aussies here. I'm proud of the Australian culture that we bring together,” Brown said. “In Australia, there is a good team culture, but it's different. I came from a team where you swim, you go to school, you come back, and it was filled with a lot of surf athletes. So, swimming was sometimes their second priority to the stuff they did in the ocean.”
According to Brown, opportunities for swimming differ in the U.S. compared to Australia.
“Being able to do school and swimming here is huge. You don't really have that opportunity in Australia where you're always traveling a lot to get to [university],” Brown said. “Coming [to the U.S.] and having all these people around every day who are on the same schedule as you has been new, but in such a good way.”
Brown recognizes the Australian representation on the swim team as well as the general international presence, which brings a much-valued sense of global pride to the team and school.
“We have a lot of internationals in general, so everyone brings their own style of how their country races,” Brown said.
Being exposed to the different swimming styles and levels of competitiveness from around the world has made her ASU experience significantly more enriching, according to Brown. She has been able to compete at a level higher than ever before.
Brown’s performances have allowed her to compete in national tournaments. She competed in the 200-meter Individual Medley (I.M), the 200-meter backstroke, and the 400-meter I.M. in the 2023 NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships,
She placed third in the 800-meter free relay at the 2023 Pac-12 Championships and has placed top three in numerous meets against individual colleges.
However, her motivation to perform at such a high level comes from the value she places on the relationships she has built with her teammates.
“I’m like, ‘Think of the girls, do it for the girls (her teammates)’”, Brown said. “I do still get nervous, and I’m trying to find out ways of how I, individually, need to overcome that… Especially this year, I tried to focus on doing it for my teammates, and that helped a lot.”
“I think I swim my best when the energy’s up, and we’re all pushing each other to swim our best, getting the best out of each other,” Brown said.
From the various clubs she swam for in Australia to the competitions she has participated in the U.S., Brown continues to grow as a swimmer. She strives to reach the success that some of her role models, such as Team U.S.A. swimmer Regan Smith and fellow Australian Kaylee McKeown have found.
Brown is currently a junior at ASU, majoring in Sports Business. She is preparing to reach her ultimate goal in swimming - representing Australia in the 2024 Olympics.