For Arizona women’s golfer Adriana Zwanck, athleticism runs in the family. And it is her family that is the reason Zwanck is the athlete she is today.
The athletic genes start with Zwanck’s father, Federico Zwanck, who was an Olympic swimmer for Argentina. He competed in the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki, Finland, in the 4×200 meter freestyle relay. His relay team placed eighth.
“”He would tell me about his (Olympic) teammates a lot,”” said Zwanck, a junior. “”He was very close to them. It was really nice. I hope to be able to someday tell my kids about my teammates like that.””
Despite swimming and golf being very different sports, Zwanck said her father still had an impact on her golf success, especially from the standpoint of a role model.
“”I admire my dad because he went to the Olympics,”” she said. “”Mentally, he gave me a lot of advice.””
Even though Federico was the more successful of Adriana’s parents athletically, it was her mother, Maria Jesus Zwanck, who played the largest role in her development as a golfer.
“”My mom was the first in the family to play golf,”” Adriana said. “”She would take me to practice and stay with me the whole time. She just played for fun, but she was a big influence on me.””
Adriana’s older
I admire my dad because he went to the Olympics.
Mentally, he gave me a lot of advice.
– Adriana Zwanck,
junior golfer
brother, Federico Jr., also played golf. He competed as an amateur in Spain until he was 18, when he quit to concentrate on his university studies.
Zwanck was born and raised in Madrid, Spain, where as a teen she topped the Spanish Amateur Rankings and was No. 1 on the European Tour.
Making the decision to move across the Atlantic Ocean and come to continue her golf career at Arizona was very tough for Zwanck, she said. Family is very important to her, and she had to leave her parents and brother behind in Madrid.
“”I wish I was with (my family),”” she said. “”I used to be with them on the weekends, but now I feel alone sometimes.””
Regardless of the miles between them, Zwanck always knows that it was her family that carried her to the athletic success she
has achieved.
“”My mom played golf and my brother played golf,”” Zwanck said. “”Now I’m
the golfer.””
