Federico Burdisso made history both at Northwestern and in Italy when he claimed two Olympic medals in Tokyo last July. Not only is he a Northwestern statistics major in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, but he also medaled at the Olympics while getting his undergraduate degree at Northwestern, a feat which had not been accomplished in 65 years at the university.
Burdisso won two bronze medals in Tokyo, one in the individual 200-meter butterfly and the other in the team 400-meter medley relay. Before Tokyo, Italy had won only 20 swimming medals in its Olympic history, but at Tokyo Burdisso and his team brought home 6 medals for the country.
“We were probably the youngest team there, and we still got six medals,” commented Burdisso, the Italian 200 m butterfly record holder.
20-year-old Burdisso claims that he has adapted to always being one of the youngest in the pool, and that in the pool, the pressure of being up against the world’s best swimmers disappears. “…when you’re in the water, you don’t really think about that anymore. You just give your best.”
The junior statistics major swam for Northwestern in 2019-2020, breaking two school records in the 200m butterfly and 200m freestyle. He had 18 first-place finishes during the season. Due to COVID-19, Burdisso had to remain in Italy for the 2020-2021 season, but he was able to focus on Olympic training. He is hoping that the 2021-2022 swimming season will reflect his Olympic success. According to his coaches, Burdisso is an excellent example of a successful student-athlete at the university.
“Federico is a world-class student-athlete who has proven himself at the highest level of our sport. His Olympic medals are a testament that you can find success at the top in both athletics and academics at Northwestern,” Katie Robinson, Northwestern University Director of Swimming and Diving, commented.
To read more about Burdisso and his accomplishments, see Northwestern Magazine’s Testing His Medal.