Olympian Tara Prentice In NYC: Past, Present, Future

Bursting with potential, Tara Prentice was one of many newcomers folded into Head Coach Adam Krikorian’s 2024 Olympic women’s squad. A record-breaking performer under Dan Klatt at UC Irvine (242 career goals, an Anteater and Big West record), Prentice was ready to make the leap from NCAA play to Olympic competition. It took turning over half the American roster from a gold-winning 2020 side for Prentice and her friend Jordan Raney—who waited even longer for an Olympic berth—to make the 2024 Paris Games squad.

Fast forward three months after America’s devastating 11-10 loss to The Netherlands in the third-place match at the Paris Aquatic Center and Prentice is at Manhattan’s Chelsea Recreation Center leading a clinic for children who have never been exposed to polo before. It’s a joyous affair, with trainers, participants and parents taking in the spectacle of two Olympians: Prentice and Peter Varellas, from the 2008 and 2012 US men’s teams. After an hour of drills and instruction—along with a lot of smiles—Prentice took a few minutes to speak about her first Olympics, provide a glimpse into her future and share her unmitigated joy in a life defined by water polo.

The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

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- It takes tremendous commitment and untold hours of training to prepare for the Olympics. What was your experience of the 2024 Paris Games?

My initial reaction was heartbreak after being so close to getting on the podium. We wanted to continue the excellence of previous teams. It was heartbreaking to get fourth in the Olympics; at the same time for a lot of us the goal that came to fruition [was] becoming an Olympian.

I’m able to leave that process—I’m hungry, I want to come back, I want to experience the highs and the lows again—with a lot of gratitude for the teammates around me. [The Olympics] was a long-term goal. If you asked 14-year-old me: Would I be an Olympian someday?—if I told her I would, [my younger self] would have been over the moon.

I need to show gratitude and thankfulness towards that younger version of me.

Sport is more than just winning. Build our community, build our water polo community, that’s why I want to get out there and meet other people interested in the sport, who want to engage with polo.

The power of community that can come from sport, the willingness to try something new, to compete with one another… you learn so much through sport, you learn so much about leading other people.

That’s super important to me—to be compassionate and kind.

The Olympics were absolutely heartbreaking, but it’s an experience I’ll remember for the rest of my life. My parents and my brother and sister were over there. In the stands]—and I didn’t even know where my family was sitting—I remember making eye contact with my dad and thinking: Oh my goodness this is a serious moment, but I need to wave at him and say hi!

I can’t let a fourth place [finish] be the defining factor when there are just so many other levels and excitement to it.

- It's tough to sustain an Olympic dream. What part will water polo play in your life going forward?

I left this last quad realizing the importance of connections. I’m bringing that to the forefront as my driving factor. I really want to help connect the veterans—all that wisdom, all that experience—to the newcomers, people like me coming into the team.

I’m now part of the middle ground. I’ve had one Olympics under my belt, so I know what it feels like. My aspiration for the next four years is to bridge that gap. It’s not a bad gap to have, but [our team has] so many different levels, so many different experiences. I want to create a positive growth mentality where we’re learning and growing.

That’s driving me to come back.

I don’t have a UC Irvine connection anymore—that is playing games regularly. [Irvine has] been a home away from home for me where I could go there any time and continue my training. But the beautiful thing about water polo is everyone knows everyone; you can call up anyone and they’re willing to help you out.

I’m applying to law school for next fall. I have to focus on my academics and my life outside of sports. The 2028 Olympics is a driving factor but for me I’m going to a tournament in November; the Pan American Games to qualify for World Championships next summer in Singapore.

My sole focus is not 2028, it’s this November tournament—making sure I’m in shape, ready to go, helping [others] going to that tournament. Taking it one tournament, one moment at a time. Rather than looking that far out, 2028 Olympics. It’s one thing at a time that’s definitely driving me.

- You’re here in New York City coaching kids in their first exposure to water polo. What stood out?

It’s that sense of community, that potentially there’s a future Olympian in that water. For someone just trying out the sport for the first time it can be scary to try a new and different thing. Some of the kids I spoke with today have never played water polo… the willingness of their parents to put them in something new they haven’t experienced. Or to try something new, have an open mind and just engage in it—that’s so exciting.

Whether someone becomes an Olympian is not the point; enjoying yourself, finding your sense of community, finding people you want to grow with, finding a passion that you might have. Just finding love, finding joy and going from there with it. In life when you find those moments hold on to them tight!

I probably had more fun than the kids had! I’m the oldest sibling so I’ve always found joy in the younger ages, my younger siblings.

I really enjoy kids having fun and trying something new. It makes my day!