George Washington University Athletics
Andrea Bolognesi: Journey to GW
3/2/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Swimming and Diving
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March 2, 2016
It all started with a near-death experience. At least that's how GW junior Andrea Bolognesi tells the story. The Colonials' three-time Atlantic 10 gold medalist attributes his start in swimming to the near-death experience in the water of a friend of his mother's. After that, Elena Raimondi, Bolognesi's mother, ensured her son's safety by enrolling the youngster in swim classes around age two.
"Because we lived close to lakes, my mom wanted me to learn how to swim since the beginning," recalled Bolognesi. "I eventually started going to courses probably two times per week, and after two years, my first coach asked if I wanted to get into the racing group, so I did and started competing when I was about 7-years-old and haven't stopped since."
Bolognesi did not experience great success as a youth swimmer, referring to his accomplishments as "probably above average, but not so good." Age 15 was when Bolognesi began to really come into his own, winning his first Italian Championship medal, in the 100 butterfly.
"That was my third Italian Championship," said Bolgonesi. "In the first two I got fifth and fourth, but then I stepped up to first at the third one I went to."
After that, Bolognesi recalls winning 10-12 more gold medals, along with "a few other bronze and silvers" at Italian Championships.
Travel, both domestically and internationally, increased as Bolognesi grew older, and the family environment of his club team allowed him to truly enjoy his travels.
"We went to Germany when I was really young and I think that was our first big trip," said Bolognesi. "We went to France several times and Serbia; I've also seen Slovenia and a few other countries because of swimming. I also liked traveling inside the country - we went to Rome several times."
High school is a five year process in Italy, and Bolognesi was forced to switch club teams after his fourth year as a result of financial struggles within the club.
"I had been swimming on the same team for probably 10-12 years, then for my last year - my senior year - I went with a new team and I had to move from the house with my parents."
The new club team meant a new home for Bolognesi, who switched schools mid-year in January and lived away from home for the first time to be closer to his new school and club team in Como, Italy - about a 60-90 minute drive away from his parents' home. The final few months of high school brought new challenges for Bolognesi, who was faced with acclimating to a new team while studying for a final exam for graduation that tested three years' worth of cumulative knowledge.
"I've always been diligent with my homework and everything related to school," said Bolognesi. "But the fact that I was living with people that weren't going to school, because they were older than me, wasn't always easy. Changing high schools in January, in another city with new people was quite hard, but as soon as you get used to it, it's ok and it's nothing you can't handle."
In addition to a new home, club team and school, Bolognesi faced another hurdle at the end of his high school career: injury.
"It all started in November 2010," reflected Bolognesi. "The first pain started then in my shoulder. I went through a ton of doctors and everyone was saying something different, so my family and I went until January without a solution."
Bolognesi stopped all upper body activity from November to January, only training with kicks, running and cycling. At that point, with Italian Championship coming up in March, Bolognesi decided to give training another shot.
"I decided to come back [to training], even if it was still painful. I trained for the Italian Championships for two months and did quite well compared to what I was swimming before, but when I tried to swim again after, it was so painful that I decided to stop for the whole season. I was going to run sometimes, but it was quite depressing, because no [doctors] were giving me a good solution and the pain wasn't going away."
Bolognesi's parents then reached out to the Italian National Team's doctor and scheduled an appointment in Rome in early September.
"He saw all of my previous tests and found my problem right away, and five days later I had surgery," said Bolognesi. "After one month I started physical therapy, and then it was two months of therapy every single day."
By mid-December, Bolognesi was back in the water, starting off slowly but regaining enough strength to take silver in the 50 breaststroke at the Italian Championships that spring before graduating from high school.
"I was really happy," said Bolognesi. "After one month and a half of real practice, after one year of being out, it was really good."
After high school Bolognesi moved to his aunt and uncle's vacation home near Monaco, allowing him to attend the University of Monaco and study English and business administration.
"I liked the area there because I love the sea and I like warm places," said Bolognesi. "I was used to going there for vacations. I liked the university because it allowed me to learn English and French."
Bolognesi also joined a swim team that was based out of the University of Monaco's pool.
"I spoke with the former coach that was about to go into retirement, and he coached me for about three months and a half before we got a new coach - who is still there - and he trained me for about two years, and I really improved my performance. I got good experience [in Monaco], I learned French and English and my times got better and better, which allowed me to come here [to the United States]."
When he began his enrollment at the University of Monaco, Bolognesi was not thinking of extending his swimming career in the U.S. upon completion.
"I was coming back from a bad shoulder injury in my senior year of high school, so I had been out for one year before moving to the other club team. My times were pretty bad and I would never have found any good scholarships. When I was at Monaco, I thought, 'OK, once I'm done here, I'm done.' But during that last year, I started looking at programs [in the US]."
Bolognesi's search for a school in the U.S. began slowly and with many emails to programs pitching his talents beginning in October of 2014. After several months of little luck, Bolognesi worked with a recruiting agent to more directly connect with schools, including GW.
"After weeks of deciding what to do and where to go, I decided on GW - mostly because of academics," said Bolognesi. "I really wanted my academics to be at a high level. I'm really happy with my decision."
In his first year as a Colonial, Bolognesi, nicknamed 'Bolo', has already left his mark. The 2016 A-10 Swimming and Diving Championship's Most Outstanding Performer, Bolognesi won gold in all three of his individual events, posting conference and school records and meeting NCAA 'B' cut standards each time. A junior eligibility-wise, Bolognesi also helped set four GW relay records and is positioned well for an invitation to the NCAA Championships at Georgia Tech from March 23-26.
"It's really exciting," said Bolognesi. "I'm really proud of what I've achieved this year and I'm also proud to represent GW because it has always done a lot for me - always kind and welcoming and offering a lot of chances to help people out on the academic and athletic side, so I guess it's a good thing for me, but also for the whole university."
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