2016-17 James H. Jenkins Boys’ Athlete of the Year: Julian belongs to record books
Over the last three seasons, questions arose after each accomplishment turned in by Glendale High swimmer Trenton Julian.
In 2015, the once-in-a-generation talent captured his first CIF Southern Section individual championship when he won the 100-yard butterfly in 49.39 seconds.
The rare feat prompted two questions: When was the last time a Glendale athlete finished in the top three and when was the last time a Nitro won a championship?
Julian’s finish was the best for the school since Mickey Mowry placed runner-up in the same event in 2012, while Julian’s victory was the program’s first since Mark Chatfield in 1971.
The following season Julian won two CIF Southern Section titles –100 butterfly (47.88) and 200 freestyle (1:36.21) – marking only the second time a Nitros athlete had won two individual championships in a season (Chatfield won two in 1971), while Julian’s three titles were a school record.
That season, Julian also earned a berth to the U.S. Olympic Trials, becoming his city’s first representative since Glendale High’s Scott Greenwood, then a swimmer with Cal Berkeley, did so in 2000.
“Trenton was just a pleasure to coach and to watch,” Glendale High coach Carol Driffill said. “He was the perfect example to his teammates, but not just because he won. He worked as hard as anyone and never settled for less than his best.”
This season, Julian added to his legacy by winning his fourth and final CIF title in the 200-yard individual medley.
His four CIF Southern Section championships match the entire previous individual title output of the program with wins from Chatfield (two in 1971), Booth Harley (1960) and Robert Sanchis (1954).
Besides CIF, Julian owns seven school records, three Pacific League records and eight All-American finishes.
“I have a record to be proud of, but I can’t stop,” Julian said. “I still feel like I have a lot to improve upon. I want to talk a few years from now about how much better I’ve gotten.”
Going forward, most record and championship inquires will begin and end with one name.
“He’s got his name all over the record books,” Driffill said. “Now when someone asks who won the most championships, who was the last to qualify to the trials, who owns this or that record, the answer will be easy: Trenton Julian.”
Before Julian adds a new life chapter at Cal Berkeley this fall, the James H. Jenkins Glendale News-Press Boys’ Athlete of the Year sat down with sportswriter Andrew J. Campa to chat about his year and legacy after spending part of the summer training abroad with his Rose Bowl Aquatics team. Here are excepts from that interview.
Andrew J. Campa: So, how have things been going for you?
Trenton Julian: Pretty well. I just got back in the states a few days ago. We were in Croatia for two weeks right after going back from nationals from the week before.
AJC: What’s that like, going internationally to train? I hear in Croatia and in nearby places that it’s a pretty big deal.
TJ: I think it kind of varies a little bit. When we’re in Croatia, it was a little bit more of a smaller team. I think they’re a little more focused on water polo, but it was still pretty good. While we were there, there was a team from Italy training there at the same time and same pool. I think there was a team from Belgium, although we didn’t really see them. We had two practices with the Croatian team, so we got to race with them a little bit and see what they could do.
AJC: Are we talking the same age group or older?
TJ: Their groups are a little wider than ours. So, our team was between 14-18 and they had a team from between 12 and 20.
AJC: I get the training aspect, but what is it like being out in other countries as a teenager seeing other parts of the world?
TJ: It’s hard to balance sometimes. We have to remember that we’re there to train and to work, but there’s also some free time, too. So, we went out into the town a little bit to kind of look around, get some souvenirs and hang out a little bit.
AJC: Has it been a relaxing summer for you or a busy one?
TJ: The main thing I’ve been focusing on is getting back into shape and getting back to what I was [at the end of my junior year]. I think Croatia helped a lot with that, because I was able to keep myself focused and not goofing off doing my own thing.
AJC: You’ve had an extraordinary high school career, but what about being a high school student in general? Did you have a normal four years, not normal or wonderful four years? What would you classify it as?
TJ: I think it got a little different as I progressed. I started freshman year, sophomore year, just kind of normal as a student. As I got older, people just talked more about what I was doing. It was different in a way. It just stayed the same with my friends, though.
AJC: Were you able to enjoy the whole high school senior year process: graduation, grad night, prom? Were you able to hang out with friends and enjoy the experience?
TJ: I mean it kind of varies because I’m at the pool a lot. So, I get really close to the friends I have here, too. So, I did hang out with friends at school, but mostly I hung out with my friends from my swim team. I spent most of my life with them. As for school activities, I didn’t go to too many because I had training. I did have fun, but I did miss out on some things, too.
AJC: What was it like to represent the city of Glendale?
TJ: I mean it’s pretty cool to represent, to feel that. I guess I’m hoping that I represented well.
AJC: Was swimming something that you naturally enjoyed or was it something that you eased into?
TJ: When I was younger, it was kind of like something I did for fun and I didn’t enjoy as much the training and racing part. As I got older and realized what it was about, I started to enjoy the hard work and training.
AJC: What’s the most taxing part of all of this? What’s most difficult?
TJ: Aside from the long sets in the distances, it’s really mentally draining. Going from one race to the next race and trying to get yourself ready while switching focus, stuff like that.
AJC: What have you enjoyed most? What was the big takeaway?
TJ: What I enjoy in the sport, in general, is the competition. I just like the drive I get, especially when I race people faster than me. It’s good to see that I still have a long way to go to get to their level and be able to race them.
AJC: Let me then segue into the U.S. Olympic Trials last year. That’s something most people don’t get a chance to do, to get onto the pool deck and go against legends. What was that experience like for you?
TJ: I think this year after trials, having performed at national championships, it was kind of the same level. It was really nice to see a lot of different levels out there competing. I still have a lot of work to do to get higher up the levels.
AJC: The swim community, particularly locally, knows who your parents (Jeff Julian and Kristine Quance) are. They are obviously very accomplished swimmers. Has that at all been difficult for you? I would imagine people just have really high expectations just based off your folks. Am I off?
TJ: I mean I think I took it worse when I was younger. It got to me. People would say, ‘You should be fast with that talent.’ I don’t know. I think after a few years, I just got used to it and stopped thinking about it. I just tried to do my own thing without listening to anyone.
AJC: How have your parents prepared you for where you’re at right now?
TJ: They’ve taught me to focus and not think about myself as much as about the team. They kept me focused on each specific event rather than get caught up on everything I was doing that day. They made me understand what I do reflects who am I and where I’m from.
AJC: You’ve accomplished a lot in your high school career. Anything you felt you missed?
TJ: There are probably a few things that I wish I could have done better or that I wish I could have done, I guess in general. I don’t know if it’s anything specific, but I wish I could have ended my senior year on a better note. I chalk it all up to experience.
AJC: OK. What are you most proudest of then?
TJ: Proudest of? Hmm. I would have to say my sophomore year (won a CIF Southern Section Division II 100-yard butterfly championship and finished third in the 200 individual medley). I think it was just very unexpected. I was just going in to race and I ended up doing really well and placing very high in both events.
AJC: You mentioned earlier how physically and mentally draining swimming can be. You hear it mentioned across various sports that the games are 90% mental and 10% physical. What ratio would you assign to swimming?
TJ: I would definitely say it’s up there. All my coaches are always saying that the race starts before you enter the water. I think that’s true. A lot of people end up psyching themselves out or psyching themselves up. That can show how the race ends up.
AJC: Sticking to that topic, I’ll hear people say things like, ‘Well, that guy wanted it more’ or that swimmer “Had the will to win.’ When or if you hear those things, what do you think? Isn’t everyone trying to win? Isn’t everyone primarily giving their best?
TJ: I don’t know if you could say they just wanted it more. It’s more about what they’re doing in the race, especially at the end. I don’t know. I think there’s always someone who puts their head down first, someone who hates to lose so much that they’ll push themselves earlier and harder.
AJC: Some people compete with chips on their shoulders, while others dedicate an effort in someone’s honor. There are a lot of ways people get pumped up. How do you prepare yourself for competition?
TJ: I just sit down and focus on what I have to do and why I’m there. I focus on all the training I’ve done for a specific event.
AJC: Right about a year ago at this time you committed to Cal Berkeley. I was curious if the recruiting process added to your worries. Did you feel extra pressure?
TJ: I don’t think I really thought about that that much. I was just kind focused on representing my [high school and club] teams well.
AJC: Amongst your swimming peers, you made your collegiate decision later than most. Was that because it was a tough decision or were you perhaps waiting on a specific school?
TJ: I definitely wanted to take my college trips and think about where I was going. I knew that I couldn’t really make a bad decision or a wrong decision, but I wanted to really make sure that I made the best decision for me. So, waiting helped me realize what I wanted and where I wanted to go.
AJC: At the Rose Bowl Aquatics Center, you can’t help but run into a ton of young kids who are just barely starting out. If one of these youngsters – let’s say she or he is 5 or 6 – were to ask you for advice on becoming a great swimmer, what would you say?
TJ: I think at a place like this with such a great coaching staff, my advice would beto make sure you’re listening and trusting your coach. That’s the main thing.
AJC: At what point did you begin to trust in yourself and your abilities. It’s one thing to say trust the coaches because they’re accomplished and experienced, but what about you as a swimmer?
TJ: Trusting myself came after I trusted my coach. Personally, it was a little easier for me because my first coaches were my parents.
AJC: OK then. How big is confidence out there when you’re competing?
TJ: Oh, it plays a big role, especially in races. I have friends who will swim their best times in practice, but then when it comes to meets, maybe they’ll have some doubt, they won’t be sure they can do it and then they end up not doing it.
AJC: Can you remember the last race you were at where you were really excited? Maybe a race where you weren’t too sure of yourself and you were just happy to be there?
TJ: It wasn’t my last time, but the time I remember that I really got nervous for a race came in 2015. I was at the Grand Prix (in Irvine). It was just a meet where there were four finals and I just remember I was lining up with two guys from Stanford and one guy from Cal and here I was just some guy going into my junior year at Glendale. I just remember being behind the blocks and freaking out.
AJC: What are you looking forward to most at Cal?
TJ: The main thing I’m looking forward to at Cal is the training and who I’m going to be with. There are a lot of guys there who push me and who are better than me. That’s what excites me, the chance to train with them and learn from them.
AJC: I wonder about your travels. What do you learn when you’re visiting Omaha (for U.S. Trials) or Croatia?
TJ: At some meets, training and swimming against other people, I pick up things for my next practice or for my next race. When I meet different people, it’s nice to hear how they train and to hear different stories.
AJC: Is it weird when you go to races and people are gunning for you? It’s not that they just know your name, but they’re looking to beat you.
TJ: (laughing) It seems really weird to me that people know my name and stuff. I guess it’s nice and it is something I wanted when I was younger. It’s just something that came along for me.
AJC: So you have a few weeks left before you head up to Cal. Are you feeling anxious, happy, or what?
TJ: It’s probably a little bit of both. I’m really excited to be out there and to be out at college in general. At the same time, I’m leaving my swim team that I’ve been with for 13 years. I get all these feelings of nostalgia and I don’t know when I’ll see some of these guys again.
AJC: They’re devastated over at Glendale. What advice do you give the program that graduates its greatest swimmer?
TJ: (chuckles) At Glendale, I’d say with coach Driffill, the team can rely on her. They just need to listen to her. They’ll move forward for sure. We both will.
