The Story Behind Olympic Swimmer Jack Alexy’s Animal Tattoo

The U.S. Men’s Swim Team has been dominant at the Olympic Games for decades thanks to legendary swimmers like Ryan Lochte, Nathan Adrian, and the GOAT Michael Phelps . Without those icons in the 2020 Tokyo Games, Caeleb Dressel stepped up with no problem winning the gold while setting Olympic records.

At the 2024 Paris Games, newcomer Jack Alexy competed in his first Olympics. Right out of the gate he, along with Dressel, Chris Guiliano, and Hunter Armstrong collected a gold medal for Team USA in the 4×100 meter freestyle relay. As they jumped around and celebrated their win, fans noticed a tattoo on Jack’s back and immediately wanted to know the story behind it.

Here’s more about the swimmer and the reason he has a bear tattoo.

Jack Alexy comes from a family of athletes

Jack Alexy was born on Jan. 19, 2003, in Morristown, New Jersey to parents Lynn (nee Ebben) and Matthew Alexy.

Jack has three siblings Kate, Max, and Rob. He attended Delbarton School before enrolling in the University of California Berkeley.

Jack’s father is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts Amherst and earned a degree in Economics. Matthew has worked for Lehman Brothers and Goldman Sachs. Today, he serves as the director of Corporate Risk Solutions at TD Securities. While Matthew is one of his son’s biggest supporters, Jack takes after his mother when it comes to collegiate athletics.

Lynn was also an athlete in school. She was a star guard for the Notre Dame women’s basketball team in the ’80s and won a pair of conference titles.

Jack’s grandfather, Bill Ebben, played sports as well. He spent time in the NBA after being drafted in the third round by the Detroit Pistons and was a member of the team in 1957-58.

Why Jack has a bear tattoo

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Now for those fans who went online asking if there’s a story behind the bear tattoo on Jack’s back, there is.

Members of Cal’s swim team have a long-standing tradition of getting the school’s golden bear mascot tattooed on them if they score points in the NCAAs.

Jack did not record any points as a freshman in his individual event. The following season, he focused more on his diet, training, and mindset and became very successful.

“I was approaching every practice with that mindset and question of asking myself, what do I do today in these next two hours that I have in the water to make an Olympic team or make a world team or win an Olympic medal,” the swimmer recalled to NBC Sports , before adding, “If I didn’t have that failure, I wouldn’t have been able to get to where I am now.”

After the 2023 World Championships, Jack finally got the Golden Bear tattooed behind his left shoulder.