Simone Manuel, after failing to make the Olympic Trials 100m freestyle final, revealed that she was diagnosed with overtraining syndrome in March, was out of the pool for three weeks until April 17 and dealt with depression, anxiety and insomnia.
“This was definitely my biggest fight,” Manuel said in an emotional, 24-minute press conference. “[Physically] it started a little bit in January. I think it was something that I didn’t quite notice until my body like completely crashed.”
Manuel, who tied for first in the Rio Olympic 100m free to become the first U.S. Black female swimmer to take individual gold, clocked 54.