Follow along with Making Team USA, presented by Xfinity, the storytelling and hard-earned journey of Team USA athletes who are competing to earn their spots to the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024.
Loomis native
Alex Obert is back and heading to Paris for his third Olympic Games. The University of the Pacific star retired after the Tokyo Olympics and began his post-career life. Obert got married, had a child, and even started working a job in finance.
"Paris is the last place my wife and I traveled before we became parents, so that's a fun memory for both of us…it will always hold a special place in my heart."
Late last year, Obert got a call from head coach
Dejan Udovicic asking whether he'd consider coming out of retirement. It was an opportunity he could not refuse.
"I have been on the [Senior National] team since Dejan took over Day 1, so me and him are kind of connected in our entire water polo careers," Obert explained. "The relationship I have with him and he has with me is definitely one of the main reasons I came back. I would have never come back for another coach."
Now, after competing in the 2023 Pan American Games and the 2024 World Aquatics Championships, Obert is one of ten athletes who have capped up at the Olympics before. That level of experience has him thinking big this summer.
"The goal of medaling in the Olympics is something I haven't accomplished. Even though this is my third Olympics, I think this is our best opportunity and that's definitely what brought me back and is our main focus as a team," Obert said.
The U.S. men last medaled in Olympic water polo in 2008, claiming silver at the Beijing Olympics, but have never come home with the gold. The opportunity to create history with this group is tantalizing and something Obert's friends and family can understand.
"Some of my friends said 'of course' because they know me, they know how competitive I am. My family tried to understand all the different angles [of coming out of retirement] but they were always supportive of me. They know this is who I truly am and how much I love to compete so they were there for me."
