13-year-old California swimmer qualifies for Olympic trials

LOS ANGELES - A California teen continues to make waves after qualifying for the Olympic trials this summer. 

Swimming prodigy Gabi Brito has already broken records in California. At just 13 years old, she swam the 50-meter freestyle race in 25.42 seconds. Her phenomenal time made her the fastest 13-year-old to swim the event in Southern California, which then earned her a spot in the 2024 Paris Olympic trials. 

"It was shocking, I didn’t even believe it," she recalled. "I just heard screams all around me. And I got out of the pool and then my mom was crying and then I couldn’t hold it in when I started talking to my coach. I started crying too. I was just so happy." 

The middle schooler started swimming at 5 years old by chasing her older sister, Bella, in the pool. The competitive siblings, who are now swimming for the Beach Cities Swim Team, are among two of the fastest in the water striving for their Olympic dreams.

"My sister was the one who was supposed to get the cut… she is one of my biggest supporters," Brito said. 

In June, Gabi and her family went to Indianapolis so she could compete in the Olympic trails on the world stage for the first time. While she didn’t move on to qualify for a lane in the Olympics, this marks her first step toward perhaps one day stepping onto that podium. 

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"It was such a cool experience to go and swim prelims in my first Olympic trials," she said. "Hopefully in 2028, we’re going to make some semifinals and finals. I’m in no rush. I’m just going to take it step by step," she added.

She maintains a healthy mentality, but make no mistake about it – her competitive nature is fierce.

Gabi has a Japanese mother and a Brazilian father who, along with her big sister, are her biggest supporters.  

"Enjoy every moment [and]  learn from the ups and downs," is the advice her mother often gives her. "Stay humble and just use that experience as what you want to do next and how you want to work even harder."

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Gabi is already hard at work for the next big event happening four years from now in Los Angeles.