Olympic champion, Glenview native Olivia Smoliga set to compete in 1st Chicago River Swim in almost 100 years
Chicago River Swim, 1st open-water swimming event on river in nearly 100 years, goes off Sunday morning
by: Erik Runge, Marisa Rodriguez, Judy Wang, Michael Johnson
Posted: Sep 19, 2025 / 10:03 AM CDT
CHICAGO — Olivia Smoliga has competed at the very highest levels of swimming in the most pressure-packed environments the sporting world has to offer.
But even the two-time Olympian, who has a gold and a bronze medal on her impressive resume, admitted she had a little nervous energy when she went to bed Saturday night.
Smoliga, a Glenview native who attended Glenbrook South High School before competing in two Olympic Games, is one of 300 swimmers jumping into the Chicago River on Sunday morning for a historic swim. The Chicago River Swim marks the first time since 1927 that a sanctioned open-water swim has been held in the river.
With no lightning in the area and a water quality test conducted Sunday morning turning out OK, the event was given the go-ahead.
“No qualms about getting into the river. I’m excited,” said Smoliga, who won a gold medal in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games and a bronze medal in the 2020 Tokyo Games. “I went to bed with a little bit of nervous energy, but after seeing the first wave of 2-milers jump in, I’m pumped.