From the pool deck to the world stage

Meghan Kinney is done watching.

Now, she wants a turn to be in the spotlight.

Following a rich Olympic experience in Beijing last summer as the team's replacement athlete for the U.S. synchronized swimming team, Kinney is stepping to the forefront and preparing for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

As a replacement athlete in Beijing, Kinney, a native of Mission Viejo, Calif., was required to know every single technical and free routine of every swimmer, an arduous task. She also had to be ready to step in should one of her teammates suffer an injury.

"It was definitely hard just to watch," Kinney said during a telephone interview from Columbus, Ohio, where she is finishing her freshman year at Ohio State. "It was a whole different mindset. I was thrown into different patterns and you have to always think on your feet really fast. It was a good learning experience.

"You see the whole picture from the outside looking in and you get a totally different perspective. It was good. It was amazing. It was cool. I could experience the Olympics in the audience. Every moment was like, 'Wow, I'm at the Olympics.'"

Kinney is determined to be ready for the 2012 Olympic Games, training in earnest with the U.S. national team in Columbus where she attends the Ohio State University. Having learned from her experience in Beijing, she's applying that knowledge to everything she's doing now.

"Seeing them swim, watching them walk out for the opening ceremonies, it has made me want to do the next Olympics even more, even when I'm run down and burned out after a hard workout," Kinney said. "It's been a different year this year. I'm not the alternate any more. I'm not in the background. So, that's exciting.

"I think through everything I've done I've grown a lot, not just as a swimmer. I think it will be pretty hard, very difficult, but I'm ready. I'm ready to take on the responsibilities and show everybody how good I can be. I'm extremely motivated."

Kinney showed she is ready to take the next step by winning the U.S. Synchronized Swimming National Championships in duet earlier this month with Ohio State teammate Becky Kim at the Aquatic Center at Stanford. Kim was part of the 2008 Olympic team.

Prior to joining the U.S. national team, Kinney had already excelled in several prestigious competitions.

She was a member of the U.S. team at the 2007 FINA World Championships, Junior National Championships and the Junior Pan American Games. In 2008, she was appointed as an alternate on the U.S. Pan American team for the second year in a row.

The 5-foot-9 standout honed her synchronized swimming skills at the Riverside Club while attending home school for the majority of her high school years.

"I was home schooled primarily, but I also went to a charter school," Kinney said. "I would train, then go to school."

Kinney has continued to maintain a busy schedule into her college years. Soon after completing her collegiate season at Ohio State, Kinney began training with the national team.

Now she is preparing for the world championships in Rome in July. Kinney might also compete in an event in Spain shortly before the world championships.

"I haven't been to either country, so I'm very excited," Kinney said of Spain and Italy. "I'm studying Italian, so I'll be able to get around easily at Rome. It's going to be fun, but we've got a lot of work ahead of us."

Kinney has some advantages in the national team training sessions in Columbus. Namely, she is training in a familiar environment with familiar people. Ohio State coach Linda Lichter-Witter has been named the coach for the U.S. team at the 2009 world championships.

"Synchronized swimming is kind of a smaller world,'' Kinney said. "You wind up competing with a lot of your teammates. It's really fun, actually."

After the summer, there will be practically no down time for Kinney. Not with the demands of school and training.

"We're going for a world trophy in November in a meet in Montreal," she said. "It's more of a fun competition. We'll be swimming an artistic routine that's not so technical."

Synchronized swimming isn't just a sport for Kinney. It's an art form, an elaborate water ballet. That's why she loves it.

"For me, personally, I like the experiences," she said. "I always loved performing and being naturally good at something and working with other people. Synchro is so hard.

"It takes so much concentration. You have to have that timing with each other. That's such a huge factor. That's why I'm still swimming, the camaraderie. I just love what I do."

That makes it easier for Kinney to dedicate so much of her life to synchronized swimming. The sport requires a balanced training regimen consisting of countless hours in the pool as well as lifting weights and cardio exercises.

"It's really athletic," Kinney said. "You have to be in great shape. We lift weights three days a week. You try to mix it up. You want to be as well-rounded as possible. Hard work and commitment really does pay off in the end."

When she's not swimming, Kinney enjoys watching some of her favorite TV shows, among them are HBO's "Entourage" and NBC's "The Office.''

"That's my kind of humor," she said. "The Disco Café episode (on "The Office'') was awesome, so funny. On 'Entourage,' my favorite character is Eric. He's got that dry sense of humor."

In terms of music, she has diverse interests. Among her favorite songs are "Viva la Vida" by Coldplay, "Think of You," by A Fine Frenzy, "American Boy" by Kanye West, "Industry" by John McLaughlin and "Say," by One Republic.

Kinney is also an aspiring cook and has said she would be interested in becoming a food critic one day.

"I love cooking and trying out new recipes," said Kinney, who also likes writing and traveling.

In general though, Kinney is just enjoying her time at Ohio State while working to maintain her grades and balance school, sport and friends and family.

"It's definitely fun," Kinney said. "I try to have the normal college life. When the weather is nice, all of us go and lay out and let the music play.

"You try to seize the moment when the weather is good. It's usually so cold here, so any warm day we have we go outside and ride our bikes. It's always fun. I never get bored."

Story courtesy Red Line Editorial, Inc. Aaron Wilson is a freelance contributor for teamusa.org. This story was not subject to the approval of the United States Olympic Committee or any National Governing Bodies.