INDIANAPOLIS — Lilly King is having another memorable experience at the U.S. Swim Trials and this time, shared some of the joy with a young girl from her hometown.
King earned a trip to Paris in two events, got engaged to be married and made a lifetime memory for a young swimmer - all in her home state.
As King clinched a spot in her third Olympics with a win in the 100-meter breaststroke Monday night at Lucas Oil Stadium, Avery Bryant and Mallie Benton cheered from the stands.
"I was just super excited to see her in person swimming," Bryant told WFIE-TV.
“It was so cool, I was so close to her. It’s always been my dream to meet her,” Benton said.
The young swimmers from King's hometown of Evansville were hoping for nothing more than a glimpse of the Olympic gold medalist, but after the race, they were about to get so much more.
“She had just got her medal, and then she threw her cap and her flowers in the crowd, and then she came over to our area and gave me the medal,” said Bryant.
That's right.
Moments after stepping on the podium to receive her first-place medal, King gave it away to Bryant, right in front of the young girl's father.
“It’s really cool to see your kid meet their hero, and the hero being everything you thought they would be,” said Steve Bryant, Avery’s father.
King's father, Mark, said that's just who his daughter is.
“She’s had moments where she says, ‘You know, I’m really tired, I’m down, I’m worn out,’ and she’ll think, 'When I was 8 years old, this was the dream,'” King said.
"Thank you so much for giving Avery your medal last night," Steve Bryant wrote to King on Instagram. "Can't put into words how happy you made her."
"I had no idea she was a GREAT swimmer!! That just made my day!!" King replied.
Now that her own dream has turned into reality, she's setting an example for the next generation of swimmers, right in her own hometown.