Warm Up: A Different Big Stage

ATLANTA – Having experience at big meets isn't an issue.

Tess Whineray has represented New Zealand at international meets, competing at the Junior Pan Pacific meet growing up and even in the Tri Series against Australia and the Pacific Islands. She has scored well at national meets, winning a national age-group championship in the 100-meter backstroke, and competed for her club team against Italian squads this past summer.

The 2026 NCAA Women's Swimming and Diving Championships is no different in the most basic of thoughts, but each "big" meet has it's own feel, and yes, this one at the McAuley Aquatics Center definitely feels new to the Colorado State junior.

"This one definitely, especially being the only one here. I'm so used to having the team around and I didn't realize how big of a difference that made until they weren't here," Whineray said after warming up prior to Thursday's heats, one day out from her first race. "I've been to big meets before. I'm used to that kind of stressful environment, but it's definitely different without having other people who are experiencing it as well.

"So that's a new kind of learning curve. (Tuesday) when we got here, I was a bit freaked out. I was like, 'oh God, what do I do?' Like, who do I talk to? But just focusing on the process and doing all that and being, OK, I've done this before, I can do it again. It's OK. I know what to do and taking that kind of stress away a little bit."

Feeling that way, Whineray did the only thing she could do: She entered the group chat and let them know, a way of reaching out for comfort – knowing full well some would give her what she needed in the moment, others not so much.

The Geyer sisters, Maddi and Kayda, sent her a nice, encouraging video. Mia Axelman replied with "just go crazy, frog." And Mavi Nehir Isman basically told her to shut up and stop whining.

What she did do the first two days at the pool was get herself accustomed to her surrounds. Where things were on the deck, the location of the locker rooms, how much time she needs to get from one place to another. She spent Wednesday evening in the warm-up pool, Thursday morning practicing in the competition pool, getting used to the wedges used for backstroke starts.

Being comfortable is a key first step to dealing with the pressure, in or out of the water. Whineray is a talented swimmer. She is not a diva, however, and feeling like the center of attention isn't in her wheelhouse.

It just happens to be the reality, which coach Christopher Woodard is trying to help her alleviate, but it is a reality to some degree.

"So I don't think the nerves are going to get to her in the sense of, this is too big of a meet or too big of an experience," Woodard said. "I think the difference here is, you're representing the Rams on a stage that we haven't been on in a long time. You are the sole representative."

Whineray found a bit of a fix for that, to feel like part of something bigger than just a solo act. As it turns out, in Atlanta, Mountain West teams sort of band together, a one-for-all kind of thing.

Rivals at the conference meet are now friendly faces.

"The Mountain West girls are here, so that's really nice. I've been talking to them a little bit." Whineray said. "Scarlet Ferris (of Nevada) ... I love her. She's so nice. I talked to Darcy (Revitt, from Washington State) a little bit. Abby Storm (San Diego State) is sitting next to us, so that's cool to have her because she's going to be doing the same races as me. We'll be on the same timeline. Yeah, it helps to just get out of my head and just get active."

Training Cycle

A month ago, Whineray was tapered and prime to take off at the Mountain West Championships, and it showed in her breaking the school records in both the 100- and 200-yard backstrokes, the second producing a conference championship and automatic qualification to the NCAA Championships.

A month later, she's hoping to be in the same neighborhood, but the timeline to be great at too meets so close together makes it difficult. Not just for her, but for everybody.

Consider of the 179 individual swims in the Thursday morning session, only 35 – less than 20 percent – swam faster than their seed time.

"I think a re-taper, when you're going to a championship, is different depending upon the athlete and depending upon the events that they're going to swim," Woodard said. "So my experience with her is probably going to be different than it was with Breann (Fuller). Luckily, they're the same events, so I use some of that template.

"And I think she's there. I think the difference is going to be getting out of altitude, getting that suit on, and how she feels mentally behind the block. Those are going to be the three big determining factors of what she's able to do here."

A quick re-taper is new to Whineray, who said she's never done it before. She's also going to turn around and do it again, as she returns home in late May to swim at the New Zealand national championships.

In terms of her swimming future, that meet and her results there – representing a return to long-course meters – is probably more important overall than the NCAA meet. She's trying to learn as much as she can from the current experience to take it into the next.

"Two months is more time to build back up, which is going to be nice to get back into a fit place and training place," Whineray said. "I can definitely learn from this month going into the next two months."

The New Zealand National Championships will be held in Auckland from May 13-17.

Lane Lines

Whineray's appearance at the NCAA Championships is the first for a Ram since 2013 when Breann Fuller qualified and competed in the 100 and 200 backstrokes, the same events Whineray will swim. … This is the 21^st season Colorado State has had an NCAA qualifier. … The 100 back is the event the most Rams have qualified for through the years, now 17 times. The 200 back is next, 11 times. … In an attempt to make the event more "broadcast friendly" only the championship finals will be competed and broadcast by ESPN; the 'B' final will not be competed for those placing 9-16 in the preliminary heats.

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