LA JOLLA, Calif. – Jack Turner had it all mapped out.
After graduating in December of 2019, the University of California, San Diego star men's water polo player was set to train full time in hopes of claiming a spot on the 2020 USA Olympic Team. Right after graduation, Turner and Team USA traveled non-stop for a month to play other international teams. After a month of traveling, the plan was to return to Los Angeles for full-time training, focusing on team chemistry and fine-tuning things, before embarking on another string of travel trips.
But then the news hit. On March 24, 2020, the IOC made the announcement that the Olympic Games would be postponed due to the outbreak of the Corona Virus.
"At the time, there were a lot of mixed emotions," said Turner. "The news on the postponement was kind of jarring and I did not know how to react at first. But it was the right thing to do in the end. Athlete safety and world health is the forefront of any event. Right now, the team mentality is to keep moving forward, try and make small steps and just be ready to get back to it."
COVID19 is not the first setback Turner has faced in his water polo career. In August 2017, Turner was in a rollover truck accident and fractured his C1 and C2 vertebrae. A year later, not only did he make a return to play for UC San Diego, but Turner earned a spot to play for the U.S. national team in the FINA World Cup.
"If I can overcome the accident, something I had no control over, it can be alright," said Turner. "Whatever's going to happen is going to happen. If you make sure you are doing whatever you can in your power to come out of this thing alright, that's the best you can do. Going through my recovery definitely gave me the positive mindset and tools that will help me stay sane."
Jack Turner was one of the best goalkeepers to ever play at UC San Diego. He earned All-American Accolades in three of his four seasons and was named the Division II ACWPC Player of the Year in 2018. That same season, Turner helped guide the Tritons to the NCAA Semi-Final round and a fifth place NCAA ranking at the end of the season.
Turner's time at UC San Diego helped shape him to become the player that he is today and it has helped him acclimate to life after college. The recent graduate spent six years with the men's water polo program, redshirting his freshman year in 2014 and taking a medical redshirt in 2017.
Turner with Harper and Ustaszewski on Senior Day
"Usha (Associate Head Coach Matt Ustaszewski) being involved with Team USA and Denny (Head Coach Denny Harper) being around for so long gave me that comfort transitioning out of UC San Diego," stated Turner. "Honestly they're mentors. I called Denny the other day asking for advice on something not even related to water polo. That line of communication is going to benefit me the rest of my life and I've been taking advantage of it these last couple of months as I transition out of college."
Turner is still busy training for the Olympics as well as the rest of Team USA. His training includes dryland workouts, watching film, weekly zoom calls and yoga. The toughest part of training while in quarantine is no access to a pool. With many Orange County beaches open, Turner has been surfing in his spare time which has helped keep him in swimming shape.
A stand-out scholar out of the pool, Turner is also taking classes through code academy to help prepare for a future career in aerospace engineering.
The Olympics have officially been rescheduled to July 23 through August 8 of 2021. One thing's for sure – Turner will keep his eye on the prize until then.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program begins a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions III and II and helped guide more than 1,300 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 82 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 37 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego student-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.
