For the United States women's water polo team, a new generation of players is making big plays, including Jenna Flynn of San Jose.
Flynn isn’t taking the journey to her first Olympics for granted. She grew up playing water polo with her two older sisters, but her biggest inspiration is her mother.
"My mom is an immigrant from the Philippines," Flynn said. "She moved here when she was 20. Now I'm here having the opportunity to go to the Olympics."
Flynn is one of the newest members of the national team. Before she was on the squad, she was a big fan of fellow Stanford Cardinal and team captain Maggie Steffens.
"I have pictures of me at 8 years old going to her Stanford games," Flynn said. "I remember watching her get dressed, have an ice pack on, asking for her autograph. Playing with her in the pool is a dream come true."
It's a dream come true to learn from one of the best in the sport while gaining her trust as a teammate.
"She pulled me aside and she was telling me not to be afraid to step into the light," Flynn said. "Having that confidence from her is huge."
The U.S. women’s water polo team is the best in the world, having won three straight Olympic gold medals in 2012, 2016 and 2021.
"A lot of these women are absolute legends of the sport," Flynn said. "Of course I walked into this program this year feeling a little bit intimidated, maybe a little bit scared, but you get to know them and you get to go through hard days and practices and games and we just begin to bond in a different way."
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The pressures in the pool are big, but the women have a family bond, a sisterhood.
Recently, while on the road, Flynn learned a simple lesson from Steffens outside the pool: how to use a match.
"My parents taught me fire safety," Flynn said. "That's what I'll say. I stayed away from the matches. But she taught me and, unfortunately, I got exposed for it. But it was really fun. Also just a great example of any small memories you can make on the road with your teammates."
Flynn is looking forward to making even more memories in Paris as the team competes for gold.
"It would mean the world to me, almost to the point where I don't even know if I can fully explain that to you right yet," she said. "Everything would be worth it. This is the ultimate goal to me."
