Pitter in Paris: Behind the Scenes at the Summer Olympics

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On Monday, July 8, Samantha Pitter was named the new head coach of Miami Swimming and Diving.

That Wednesday, she flew to Paris.

(Talk about a busy week!)

Pitter, the former associate head coach at the University of Pittsburgh, spent a total of three-and-a-half weeks alongside Pitt swimmer Jayla Pina in France, helping Pina prepare for and compete in the 2024 Summer Olympics. Although Pina is a native of Massachusetts, her mother was born in Cape Verde (an island nation off the west coast of Africa), which permits her to represent Cape Verde when she competes on the international stage and at the Olympic Games. Pina took part in the women's 200 individual medley on August 2.

Each of Cape Verde's seven Olympic athletes had one or two support staff members traveling with them, and that included Pitter, who served as an assistant swimming coach for the delegation and worked directly with Pina. This was Pina's second Olympics (having participated in the Tokyo Games), but the first experience for Pitter.

Members of the Cape Verde delegation at Paris Olympics — *Members of the Cape Verde delegation at the Paris Olympics*

"Even though I am not Cape Verdean, the Olympic Committee of Cape Verde was super-supportive and allowed Jayla to take her coach from college," Pitter said. "It would be hard to change up your coach just weeks before the Games, and similarly hard for me to coach her from stateside by sending her workouts. Having eyes on an athlete is always preferable to prepare them the best, and I am so thankful that they allowed me to go.

"It took a long time to put all the stuff in motion. And I had to find somebody to take care of my two dogs for that long!

"When I took the job at Miami, there really wasn't a lot of time to get somebody else, and I had already been through a lot of the training with her to get her ready, so it just made sense to continue to go. The transition timing worked out, since there weren't a lot of swimming and diving student-athletes on campus [in Oxford] this summer."

Pitter enjoyed her time overseas, even though the daily schedule was busy between practice, getting back and forth to the pool, and also trying to set up multiple Zoom meetings per day to connect with each of the 70+ RedHawks on her new team so she could begin getting to know them.

The Cape Verde group traveled first to Parthenay, a small town about four hours outside of Paris, for training camp before moving into the Olympic Village on July 22.

"A lot of it was really just trying to get race-ready," Pitter said. "We tried to follow the competition schedule as much as possible [in Paris], but the transportation was a little bit tough.

"It's very much like a college lifestyle: You're waking up, going to the dining hall, going to practice. The round trip from the pool took up a big chunk of the day. We didn't have a trip shorter than four hours. We'd be in line for the bus at the village transportation hub for 15 or 20 minutes, take the 40-minute bus to the pool, train for two hours, and then make the hour trip back.

"There were a couple of times when we did doubles, and then she would also head to the gym in the village to get a little bit of lifting in. So our schedule was really pretty packed…between meals and training and me trying to get a couple meetings in, the day went by quick!"

Even though there wasn't much free time on the itinerary, Pitter and Pina did manage to attend a few of the Olympic competitions during their stay in the city.

"We were able to go to some pretty high-ticket items, which was awesome," Pitter recounted. "Aside from full access to all swimming sessions, we got to see gymnastics, fencing, track and field and beach volleyball. That beach volleyball stadium by the Eiffel Tower was pretty amazing."

Pina also participated in the opening ceremony, riding on a boat down the Seine River, but with limited spots available, Pitter chose to stay in the village and watch it on television so as many Cape Verdeans as possible could have the chance to enjoy that once-in-a-lifetime event with their nation's delegation.

Paris Olympics

"The best part about the Games was the vibe in the Village," Pitter said. "All of the athletes representing their country with so much pride, and then building after building where every balcony had a different flag on it. It was cool to just walk around and see how many countries were represented."

Pitter said they saw the United States gymnastics team walking around the Olympic Village (including superstar Simone Biles), as well as a few high-profile tennis players. "Honestly, I probably saw more [celebrities] than I know, but in the moment you don't even think about it," she added. "With all the athletes in the dining hall, everyone just kind of looks the same."

When race day rolled around, Pina finished her swim with a time of 2:24.51, but did not advance to the finals that evening. Still, while the Olympics represent the global pinnacle of athletic competition, Pitter said she appreciated —despite the high-stakes, high-profile event— how 'normal' everything felt.

"It is the Olympic Games for sure, but in a lot of ways, it feels like just another swim meet," she said. "You see athletes go through the same stuff that you deal with at a college conference meet. There are people with race anxiety, people who didn't sleep well, people aren't feeling the best because of the food: All of the issues you have at any meet.

"Something I've found across my career is that what student-athletes go through are pretty universal things. So to even go to the Olympics and see the universality of, 'Man, these athletes are all the same' was very normalizing. It doesn't change as you get more skilled, more elite, more talented athletes.

"Everybody's dealing with the same stuff."

After Pina was done swimming, Pitter took her to visit some of the city's tourist attractions (and sample a few world-famous crepes and sorbets) before it was time to return stateside. "I love to travel and this was my fourth time to Paris, but Jayla had never been," said Pitter. Jayla Pina and Samantha Pitter in Paris

While working directly with a single student-athlete in such a focused way for nearly a month is unique for a college swim coach (whose time is often divided between dozens of swimmers and divers), Pitter appreciated the opportunity she had to coach Pina up to and through the Olympics, as well as the bond that developed and deepened through that process.

"I really love the athlete-coach relationship. That's why I do this," Pitter said. "For me to have that time just with one athlete really amplified the special part of this job that we have.

"We had a great time, and if I didn't put that relationship piece first, I don't think she would have been as successful…

"Because we have that positive relationship, I tried to keep her motivated and keep her having fun every day. That's really easy in the moment, only focused on one athlete, but for me, it spreads to all 72 of the athletes we have at Miami. I want them to come in having fun, feel like they're getting something out of practice outside of just putting their head down and working hard, and feel accomplished when they leave."

Pitter said one of her favorite parts of her whirlwind summer was the amount of support she received from both the student-athletes she coached with the Panthers as well as the swimmers and divers in the program she's taking over at Miami. "The amount of support and all the messages I got was huge," Pitter said. "That carried over my excitement into doing work while I was in Paris, to make sure when I came back things would roll smoothly.

"That's what it's all about for me —that student-athlete relationship—and feeling the support coming in makes it all worth it."

Now that she's back in the United States, Pitter is packing up her belongings, preparing to move to Oxford next week, and eagerly anticipating her debut season with the RedHawks. She expects to announce her staff soon, including a full-time diving coach, and can't wait to officially move in to the Corwin M. Nixon Aquatic Center and get to work.

"There's definitely a lot of excitement for this next chapter for me," she said. "I've been wanting to be a head coach for a long time and found a great fit with Miami…

"Obviously the teams are in a good spot, finishing second [women] and first [men] at the conference level. We want to keep that momentum rolling, but also come on deck with a revitalized spirit, a little bit more energy as a group and a united vision as a team."

And as she welcomes the Class of 2028 to campus this fall to begin their college careers, who knows? By the time the Summer Olympics roll around again in 2028, Pitter could very well have a reason to return to the Games in Los Angeles…

…but this time, with a RedHawk (or perhaps several?!?) by her side.

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Pina and Pitter — *all photos courtesy of Samantha Pitter*

Pitter in Paris: Behind the Scenes at the Summer Olympics

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