Swedish Fish: Frida Berggren makes waves in Colorado swimming

It is difficult to determine which story is the more compelling, whether it's the circumstances that brought Frida Berggren to Lewis-Palmer (Monument, Colo.) or the splash the Swede has made since coming to the states.

A tale nearly three decades in the making is unfolding in Monument (located just north of Colorado Springs), where Berggren, a 17-year-old exchange student, already is being mentioned in the same breath as the state's top swimmers – and yes, that includes Missy Franklin (Regis Jesuit) and Bonnie Brandon (Cherry Creek).

"I've gotten a lot of attention which is a little surprising," Berggren said. "It's fun though."

While not as elite as the nationally recognized Franklin, Lewis-Palmer coach Alan Arata believes Berggren could qualify for state in eight different events. Swimmers are allowed to compete in four, so the Rangers will spend the season deciding on which ones.

"She is absolutely brilliant in every event," Arata said. "Her best event is the 200-yard Individual Medley, but she could be in the top eight in the state in any event. In most, she could be in the top three."

But more on that later.

The reason Berggren arrived – and instantly transformed already-thriving Rangers swimming program into a powerhouse – originates in the early 1980s. That's when Berggren's mom, Pia, was an exchange student from Sweden who landed in Salt Lake City with the Roberts family. Then, Pia forged what turned out to be a lifelong friendship with the Roberts' daughter, Nancy.

The two hit it off so well that Nancy soon became an exchange student herself and stayed with Pia's family for a year in Sweden. The two never lost contact.

Nancy – now Nancy Turner – is Lewis-Palmer's assistant swimming coach. Pia's daughter, Frida, happened to be one of Sweden's finest up-and-coming swimmers. One can see where this is heading.

Frida also had been communicating by Facebook with Nancy's daughter, Andie Turner, who just happens to be a swimming enthusiast. An eighth-grader, she'll swim at Lewis-Palmer next year. She insisted to Frida that she was welcome to transform the Turner household from five into six for a year.

The circumstances were too ripe to ignore, so after a complicated process – "it was a lot of paperwork," Frida said – she is here for the school year, staying with the same woman whose parents hosted her mom several years earlier.

"Twenty-nine years," Nancy said with a laugh. "Her mom told me that I don't always have to point out that it's been 29 years. We're showing our age. But we're so happy for Frida. It's gone fast. We predicted it was going to be a fast year and it's already halfway over."

As with most exchange-student arrangements, it's a one-year deal. Frida's junior year at Lewis-Palmer will be her last. But don't count on it being her final year in the U.S. She'll go back home to Sweden for a year to complete high school, and perhaps compete for her club team in Vasteras (Swedish high schools don't sanction athletics). Then, she has her sights set on swimming for a Division I program in the U.S.

The University of Texas already got a look at Berggren when she was in Texas for junior nationals earlier this month.

"After my year in Sweden is done I'll definitely look into that," she said. "In Sweden we don't have colleges with many competing sports."

There is plenty of competition here. In fact, Berggren might have arrived during Colorado swimming's peak era.

"Our state is the fastest swimming state in the nation with girls like Missy Franklin and Bonnie Brandon," Arata said. "If we were in any other state, California, I don't care, any, Frida would be the top dog. But there's nobody in the whole world who is the top dog over Missy Franklin right now. Wherever Missy swims, you're going for second place. So you try to avoid Missy."

In whichever events Berggren participates at the Class 5A state meet, she'll serve as a riveting tale, even with the all-encompassing presence of Franklin. At the junior national meet in Texas, Berggren finished 11th in the 200 freestyle and 13th in the 200 IM – keeping in mind it was during her first few weeks of varsity competition.

"After the way she swam down there, I can't imagine that there's any college in the nation that doesn't want her," Arata said.

She followed up that performance by finishing first in two events at the Cheyenne Mountain Invite, the final meet before winter break: the 500 freestyle (5 minutes, 8 seconds) and 100 butterfly (57.67). She also helped two relay teams to first-place finishes, including the 200 relay, which set a school and meet record (1:49.33).

All the while, she's meshed seamlessly with her talented teammates, swimmers such as Karin Roh, Laura Day, Hanna Hartel and Olga Britton.

"They're really nice," Breggren said. "It's fun to be with them, to swim with them and practice with them. There are a few times when I've been a little homesick, but I think it's working pretty well."

The chapter might not end here. The Berggrens already have talked to Andie about spending one of her high school years in Sweden.