Seven-time Olympic medalist Amanda Beard spreads mental health awareness in Lincoln

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — Four-time Olympian Amanda Beard visited Lincoln on Thursday evening at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, sharing her mental health journey and spreading awareness to help fight the stigma against seeking help.

The seven-time Olympic medalist and winner of eight USA swimming national titles competed in over 20 global swimming events in her illustrious career, winning five gold medals and previously holding the world record in the 200m breaststroke.

Throughout her career, one battle wasn’t talked about as much—her mental health.

“There was a moment where I really struggled because I was doing a lot of work for companies, like photoshoots for swim magazines,” Beard said. “This kind of triggered and started a lot of my eating issues where it would be a couple of weeks going into a photoshoot where I would just eat raw vegetables and have black coffee.”

For Beard, her battle with mental health started at a young age. She became the second youngest swimmer in American history to metal at the age of 14, receiving silver in the 100- and 200-meter breaststrokes.

It was in a press conference afterwards that she remembers the first time she felt a sense of depression from competing.

“And then I have this one media person ask me, ‘miss Beard, how does it feel to lose?'” Beard said. “I didn’t think about it as a loss. I was so proud of myself. I was having so much fun and, in that moment, all I could think about was, did I let my country down?”

In 2012, Beard published a book titled “In the Water, They Can’t See Me Cry.” The memoir documents her athletic journey and her battle with mental health.

Now, she prioritizes what makes her happy—teaching people to swim, being with her family, and yes, the occasional swim.

Today, besides being a coach at the University of Arizona, she travels the country to help fight the stigma, encouraging more people to seek help for mental health issues.