Whether he’s a Bulldawg or a Bear, Brown University standout swimmer and Haddonfield Memorial High School alum Tommy Glenn moves like a fish in the water. With an impressive resume already under his belt, Glenn is poised to have his best season yet.
“The success I’ve seen and the team has seen is a tangible culmination of the rest of my career at Brown since I was a freshman,” Glenn said. “The team has gotten faster every year and the work I’ve put in each year has put me in this position.”
In his first Ivy League Championship meet in 2011, Glenn placed second in the 200 butterfly on the way to an NCAA B cut, scored in the 500 freestyle, 200 freestyle and was a member of the 400 medley, 800 freestyle, and 400 freestyle relays. Not bad for someone’s first appearance on the big stage.
“That was a big step just competing on that level, I’ve been building on it ever since,” Glenn said.
The next year Glenn won the 100 and 200 butterfly at the Ivy League Championship meet, achieving NCAA ‘B’ cuts in both events while also setting Brown school records. He was named first team All-Ivy in the 100 and 200 butterfly and was an All-American Honorable Mention for his performance in the 200 butterfly. The season resulted in him being named the 2011–2012 NCAA Male Breakout Swimmer of the Year.
The 2013 season brought more of the same. Again at the Men’s Ivy League Swimming and Diving Championships, held at Brown’s Katherine Moran Coleman Aquatics Center, the economics concentrator defended two Ivy League titles, competed on three relays for the Bears, set three school records and turned in some of the fastest times in the country. Despite his own success, Glenn speaks more about goals for the team.
“I was first person to score at NCAA’s from Brown in more than 50 years so for me the goal was to bring the team to that level,” Glenn said.
Brown completed its new pool at the end of Glenn’s sophomore season, which he feels put the team in a position to succeed.
“It’s a great pool, one of the best on the east coast. Before that we were swimming in a temporary bubble pool and the team was honestly less than motivated,” Glenn said. “That facility pushed our team to another level.”
Though his collegiate career at Brown ends in the spring, Glenn took steps over the summer to ensure his swimming career is far from over. He trained at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club made famous by some swimmer named Michael Phelps.
“Working with Bob Bowman (Phelps’ swim coach) was a great experience. I had an internship with Wells Fargo in Maryland over the summer so I reached out to him. I got to train with a group of 10–15 swimmers all of who had competed at the Olympics or World Championships so yeah it was good company,” Glenn said.
Training with Olympians has not caused Glenn to forget his roots.
“Brown reminds of HMHS because it’s provided a lot of avenues for me to explore and a lot of opportunities,” Glenn said. “Haddonfield was a great place to grow up, the town was good to me.”
