Carmel Olympians get hero’s welcome

CARMEL, Ind. (WISH) — The Carmel Swim Club on Thursday evening gave a hero’s welcome to Alex and Aaron Shackell following their return Indiana after representing the United States in the Paris Olympics.

The sibling swimming duo of Alex and Aaron were feted Thursday in the Carmel High School main cafeteria. She took home a gold and a silver medal for her participation in two relays.

“It was the best month of my life,” Alex said. “It was so much fun getting to see what it’s like behind the scenes instead of watching it on TV.”

Aaron was the only American finalist in the men’s 400 meter, a highly competitive race.

“Being (in) an Olympic final is something almost no one gets to do and being able to go against all those guys in the final, some of the best 400 freestylers of all time was super cool,” Aaron said.

For these siblings, swimming together in the Olympics was just like any other meet.

“We already went to Junior Pan Pac (the Junior Pan Pacific swimming meet) together, so we already had a little of that experience,” Alex said. “But yeah, super proud of this guy for making the final.”

“It was a super cool experience,” Aaron said. “After I was done getting to watch her swim and win two medals was super cool.”

Alex just started her senior year of high school this week. Despite all the excitement, she was a well-adjusted normal teen.

“A lot of them have followed me on Instagram,” Alex said. “A lot of people I’ve never talked to will come up to me, so definitely a little weird but I guess it comes along with going to the Olympics.”

Alex has taken her new status as a role model to young swimmers in stride.

“I remember when I was younger and I would see an Olympian in person and I was like starstruck,” Alex said. “So, being the Olympian now is really weird, but also I want these kids to know they can do it, too.”

The pair say their goal is to continue to train until they have the chance to qualify for the next summer Olympics in Los Angeles.