'What am I doing this for?' Olympic swimmer Regan Smith talks summer preparation, love for the sport

Even after the Tokyo Olympics were postponed in 2020, plenty of uncertainty swirled around what the games would look like — or if they'd even happen — in 2021.

One of those wondering was Minnesota native Regan Smith.

In an interview with NBC's Vicky Nguyen, Smith, who just set the Olympic record in the 100-meter backstroke semifinals, talked about her experience during the COVID-19 pandemic and what she was thinking as the games were postponed.

"You had so much momentum, and then the pandemic hit," Nguyen said to Smith. "It sort of shut a lot of it down."

"I just remember having a lot of practices thinking, what am I doing this for? Like, the games might not even happen," Smith responded. "Like, why am I training right now? I just feel like I'm training for nothing, like I'm spinning in a circle. It got really hard mentally, a lot of the times last summer, and it was hard to push through. But I think I think it made me tougher, I really do."

Among other topics discussed, Smith shared why she fell in love with the sport: her older sister Brenna.

"I pushed really hard because I wanted to follow my sister's footsteps," Smith said, thinking back to when she was seven years old. "... We did like five or six things and I won by like a lot, and I had so much fun. I looked so silly out there -- I remember I was wearing a little tankini. I looked ridiculous, but I loved it."

Growing up, though, Smith hated the backstroke.

"I was terrified of backstroke, because being on my back and not being able to see the wall, I refused to do the backstroke," Smith told NBC Nightly News. "I'd cry if I had to do it."

More:14 Minnesota athletes qualified for the 2021 Summer Olympics. Who are they?

Smith's perseverance appears to have paid off, as the 19-year-old swimmer made history in her event Monday morning. Smith set the Olympic record in the 100-meter backstroke, clocking a time of 57.86 seconds in her first heat — an emphatic note to send her to the finals.

Smith will compete for gold medal on Monday night in the 100-meter backstroke finals at 8:51 p.m. CT.

Adam Hensley is a digital producer with the USA Today Network. You can follow him on Twitter @A_Hens83.