Regan Smith’s fondest memories of the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 did not take place in the pool but, rather, the dorms.

She reveled in playing games such as Jenga and Cards Against Humanity with other swimmers around her age while listening to music, far away from the competition.

Big meets never really excited the Lakeville native. Quite the opposite, actually. After she burst onto the scene via world-record-setting swims at the 2018 World Championships as a 17-year-old, the stardom and expectations that followed left Smith wading in anxiety and nervousness ahead of her biggest events.

“I lost my love for the sport for a long time,” she said. “I didn’t enjoy competing, and I was just going through the motions, because I don’t think I was competing and performing to the best of my ability.”

Fast forward three years, and Smith walked into Lucas Oil Stadium, a football stadium packed with 20,000 fans in attendance to watch the U.S. Swimming Trials last month. It was the most-attended swim meet in history.

Such a stage would have, justifiably, frightened Smith in her not-too-distant past. But, this time, she played the role of a gladiator who was legitimately exhilarated by the size of her arena.

“It was pretty cool,” Smith said. “And that was the first meet that I was genuinely amped up about, instead of scared of.”

And the desired results followed. Smith qualified for the Olympics in all three of her events — the 200 butterfly, 200 backstroke and 100 backstroke, setting a new world record in the latter. She enters the Paris Olympics this week back on top of the swimming world, and no longer afraid of the massive spotlight that comes with it.

Part of her resurgence in performance is a product of her uniting with noted coach Bob Bowman. His straightforward workout routine resonated with Smith, who has always savored the structure and routine of the practice pool.

But Smith noted that she’s still the same swimmer, physically, as the teenager who took the world by storm six years ago. But that girl was relatively naive to pressure and expectations. Smith is now a professional who is all too aware of what’s going on around her.

It’s why she credits her current form to “a lot of mental work.”

One of the definitions of “perform,” per Oxford Languages, is to “present to an audience” as a form of entertainment. That’s a concept Emily Klueh, U.S. Swimmer’s manager of psychological services, conveys to Smith in their sessions.

“Something she always says to me is, ‘Give the crowd a show. Give the people a show. This is about entertainment,’ ” Smith said.

So when the 22-year-old gets nervous, which is still a very natural occurrence, she simplifies the task in front of her using that lens.

“OK, all I’m trying to do is entertain the people who are watching this swim meet,” Smith said. “It doesn’t have to be any deeper than that. It should be fun. The people just want to be entertained and excited and have a good time, so how can I do that for them?”

Swim as fast as you can, and have fun doing so.

For the longest time, Smith was always a swimmer who enjoyed practices more than meets. She never had any issue showing up to the pool and hammering out a grueling workout plan. That was preferred over testing herself against the best.

Her new mentality has shifted that mindset.

“So honestly I’d say, as of now, I do enjoy meets a lot more than practice,” Smith said. “And I think I’m proud of that. Because I used to enjoy practice more, just because there was no pressure. But it’s important to be able to withstand pressure and still perform well.”

Smith said being a part of Bowman’s training group has helped her embrace competing and the urge to perform to the best of her ability. When a challenge presents itself, she now aims to rise to it, rather than backing down.

“You know like, ‘Fight or flight?’” I think I used to flight in situations,” Smith said. “And now I think I’m more of a fighter, so I think that’s been the biggest change as I’ve gotten older.”

Not only does Smith not back down from a fight, she savors the battle.

She walked away from Tokyo with a silver medal and two bronzes, an Olympic haul by anyone’s standards. Obviously now Smith, a gold-medal favorite, seeks to stand on top of the podium. But her goals entering Paris aren’t centered on those types of results.

“Ultimately, it’s not completely in my control, if you know what I mean. I want to execute every race to the best of my ability and really do a good job with my preparation and my race plan — pre-race, post-race, during the race and everything in between,” she said. “I think if I do a really good job with sleep, recovery, warmups, cool down, race execution and everything in between there, as well, I think that will constitute a successful meet for me, because I think that’s what’s going to create the best results.

“Because, ultimately, I could have the race of my life and still walk away with the silver medal or a bronze medal. If that happens to me, I don’t want to walk away feeling incredibly disappointed, because more likely than not, I’ll still have had a performance that I should be incredibly proud of. I want to have my results based on things that are completely in my control.”

One of those things is her mindset. And Smith knows this. She wants her favorite memories from this Olympics to have taken place in the pool.

“Because I know that when I’m done swimming, I’m going to miss these days. These are going to be the glory days of my life, so I don’t want to wish them away and be really nervous for them. I want to embrace the experience and really enjoy it,” Smith said. “The Olympics — and opportunities to compete in the Olympics — are so few and far between, so I want to approach it the same way and think like, ‘What an incredible opportunity this is.’

“I truly want to soak it in instead of feeling anxious and nervous and wanting to wish the experience away. I know it sounds cliche, and I feel like everyone says, ‘Oh, I just want to enjoy it.’ But I truly do, because I feel like that’s where the best results are produced — when you’re actually enjoying the environment that you’re in, you’re really embracing competition and you’re embracing your nerves and the pressures that come with it. Because I think it can be really fun if you frame it in the right way, like, ‘Wow, what an incredible opportunity I have in front of me’ instead of thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, this is a very daunting thing I have to do.’ So hopefully that’s how I’ll feel. I feel that way now, for sure.”

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While most Minnesotans were still asleep on Saturday morning, former Gophers diver Sarah Bacon was busy helping Team USA win its first medal of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

She teamed up with diving partner Kassidy Cook to take the silver medal in the 3-meter synchronized springboard competition. They finished with 314.64 points, trailing Chang Yani and Chen Yiwen of China, who finished with 337.68 points to take home the gold medal.

This milestone moment has been a long time coming for Bacon.

After winning five NCAA titles with the Gophers, Bacon failed to qualify for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. She moved to Texas with her boyfriend in the immediate aftermath and thought about retiring from the sport for good. Eventually, Bacon got the itch to chase her dream once again, returning to Minnesota to train with Cook under the watchful eye of Gophers diving coach Wenbo Chen.

This isn’t the end for Bacon at the Olympics. She will compete in the 3-meter individual springboard on August 7 at 8 a.m. CT.

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Khaled El-Ahmad made only small ripples with player additions during the primary transfer window earlier this season.

Now Minnesota United’s Chief Soccer Officer has completed a move he and the club hope can make a big splash.

MNUFC announced Saturday the signing of 24-year-old striker Kelvin Yeboah to a 3 1/2-year Designated Player contract trough 2027, with a club option for 2028. The Loons will pay Italian club Genoa a transfer fee of approximately 3.2 million.

“Kelvin is an exciting young player that already has vast playing experience amongst some of the best soccer players across the globe along with world-class clubs,” El-Ahmad said in a statement. “Minnesota welcomes Kelvin, and I look forward to seeing the impact he can make within our club.”

Yeboah has played in Italy’s Serie A, the German Bundesliga, France’s Ligue 1 and the Belgium Pro League A, but the 6-foot forward has not played more than 720 minutes in a season since 2021-22.

Yeboah had 15 goal contributions (11 goals and four assists) for Sturm Graz that season, leading to his transfer to Genoa. He then got caught in a cycle of three loan moves to Augsburg, Montpellier and Standard Liege and failed to play significant minutes.

Since February at Standard Liege, he had six goals in 14 games in all competitions. He averaged an impressive 0.82 goals per 90 minutes across his six league games this year, per fbref.com.

Yeboah, who was in Minnesota to complete medical exams this week, said he was impressed by what MNUFC presented.

“The most important thing is always the project, from the soccer staff to my teammates, all the way up to ownership,” Yeboah said in a statement. “I loved the way the team and the club has been presented to me. Everyone here has ambitions to win and that’s what I want to be a part of.

“I will bring a mentality to never give up and always give my best,” Yeboah continued. “Fans will see me on the field playing with passion and screaming and giving my all. My mentality, mixed with my speed, strength and technical ability will help me succeed here in Minnesota. My goal is to influence the game as much as possible.”

The Loons’ history with DP strikers has had more misses than hits, including mostly underwhelming stints with Angelo Rodriguez, Adrien Hunou, Luis Amarilla and Mender Garcia. The addition of Yeboah could signal the pending end for current DP striker Teemu Pukki; the 34-year-old has 14 goals in 1,907 minutes across two seasons in Minnesota. His contract is up next July.

Yeboah, who was born in Ghana and is a Italian citizen, will occupy an international roster spot with Loons and will be eligible to play pending his immigration paperwork.

Amy Lindgren

Well, that was excruciating.

You don’t have to be political to appreciate the difficulty of the choice President Joe Biden just made. Not to over-simplify, but at its core, leaving the presidential campaign was a decision about retirement.

It’s a question faced by millions of American workers each year, as we finally come to the tail end of the baby boom generation. According to a frequently quoted report from the Alliance for Lifetime Income (April 2024), we’ll see 4.1 million Americans reach 65, the traditional age of retirement, by the end of this year. Between 2024 and 2030, a record 30.4 million will achieve this milestone.

Will they all retire? Many already have, while perhaps as many as 20% will work to 70 or 74. This makes sense: Despite its symbolic meaning, we’ve known for years that 65 is no longer the default age for leaving the workforce.

People retire at their own pace and for their own reasons. Many make the choice unwillingly, due to poor health or difficulty finding suitable work. Others choose to stop working when their assets reach a certain level. And still others opt for a semi-retired lifestyle, working part-time while drawing from Social Security or retirement funds.

For those continuing to work, the decision may be financial, but for many it reflects a continuing interest in the work itself, or a need to interact with others.

Do some people hang on too long to their work lives? Undoubtedly. Conversely, some find they have retired too soon, and eventually “unretire” or start a new venture to replace what they feel is missing.

If you’re in your 50s or 60s but not yet retired, the decision is likely gaining prominence in your thinking. You already know to review your finances and talk with a planner to help calculate how much you’ll need. Here are some other steps to add to your process.

Ask yourself: What are you retiring from?

It’s important to distinguish between retiring from a job and retiring from working altogether. In the first case, you may be ready for something new or longing for fewer responsibilities, while the second option means you would be exiting the work world completely.

This distinction will impact everything from your timing to how you describe your decision to others. For example, if you want to stay in the work force, it’s strategic to call your exit a transition rather than a retirement, even if that’s what your employer is calling it.

Learn the rules

You probably already know that your age at retirement impacts your Social Security benefits, but what about withdrawals from your retirement funds, or rules concerning your pension, if you have one?

You’ll also need to confirm that you and your family will have health insurance post-retirement. If you’re planning to rely on Medicare, understanding what’s covered and when it starts will be important.

Another consideration

Also, your workplace may have standards defining under which conditions you can return in the future, should you choose to. Likewise, if you’re drawing a union pension, you may find yet another set of rules describing what work you can do once you’ve retired.

Even if your potential retirement is years away, it’s worth doing some of this research now. Having a general sense of the rules will help with your planning in the meantime.

Picture the outcome

When you imagine yourself post-retirement, what are the specifics? Having a vision of the next stage can be critical to both the decision itself and how you implement it. For example, someone who is planning self-employment might arrange for a 4-day workweek in the year before retiring, to allow time to develop the business. Likewise, a worker who plans to contract their services in their current field would benefit from internal and external networking before they leave their company.

What if your retirement vision includes relocating to another state? One idea that has worked for others: If your target date is a ways away, and if your company happens to have work in that state, perhaps you could transfer now, and enjoy your company’s support while you get re-established in your (pre-) retirement home.

Consider your current housing

Speaking of homes — if you’re expecting to change homes during retirement, consider front-loading that activity. Whether you’d be renting or owning your next place, this kind of financial transaction is usually easier when you can demonstrate income. The same goes for other large purchases, such as a car or camper.

Don’t get overwhelmed

It’s a lot to consider, but at some point the decision to retire might not be optional. Building plans early on can relieve stress, while also providing flexibility to make changes if needed.

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Amy Lindgren owns a career consulting firm in St. Paul. She can be reached at alindgren@prototypecareerservice.com.