You may be thinking Team USA swimmer Katharine Berkoff will only be leaving the 2024 ParisOlympics with a bronze medal (not too shabby!), but no. She’ll also be leaving with an even deeper connection to her dad. And though that may not be as shiny, many would say it’s even more special.
Because when Katharine won bronze in the 100-meter backstroke this week, she won the same medal that her dad, David Berkoff, won 32 years ago in the 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics. To the day. How cool is that?! Like father, like daughter, we suppose.
“It’s really cool,” Katharine said of the sentimental connection. “I mean, I just went out there and did everything I could … it was really special.”
“I’m super glad to be in my dad’s footsteps,” she continued.
David could be seen cheering his daughter on and going rightfully wild when she finished in just 57.89 seconds — about 3 seconds behind his 54.78 time more than three decades ago.
Katharine wasn’t the only Team USA swimmer to earn a medal in the 100-meter backstroke. Regan Smith won silver and said it was “really special” to share the podium with Katharine.
“I’m so proud of Katharine and the legacy that she has upheld of her dad’s is absolutely incredible,” Smith said. “I know that he is so unbelievably proud of her too. And it’s just really special to kind of see that continue through the generations, her dad and now her.”
The Paris Olympics have been full of heartwarming family moments — especially for the Team USA swimmers. Earlier this week, Ryan Murphy learned the sex of his baby after winning bronze in the 100-meter backstroke. (Is there something about that race and that medal?! Something in the *ahem* water?)
In the stands, his wife jumped up and down with a sign that read, “RYAN It’s a GIRL!”
“That’s a great way to find out,” Murphy said, per NBC News. “That really lit me up and brought this night to a whole other level. It’s really exciting to learn that I’m going to be a girl dad.”
And who knows, maybe years from now Murphy’s daughter will be just like Katharine — earning a medal in the same event her father did.
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