Turkish Olympian Merve Tuncel will not be attending USC after “a problem with admission” was communicated to her this week, leaving the 18-year-old distance freestyle specialist scrambling to find a new NCAA home.
Update: Tuncel was slated to join the Trojans this fall, but now she’ll stay in Turkey training for the Paris 2024 Olympics before beginning her NCAA career in the fall of 2024.
“Unfortunately, there was a problem with admission and they told me this week,” Tuncel told SwimSwam. “I am currently talking with other universities. I have very little time to decide. If they had told me this at least two months ago, I wouldn’t have been in such a difficult situation.”
Tuncel committed to USC last May, less than a year after winning the 400 free, 800 free, and 1500 free at the 2021 European Junior Championships, the latter two in meet records. A few months later, she swept those same three events at the 2022 World Junior Championships. This year, she missed out on her third consecutive sweep of the distance events at Euro Juniors with golds in the 1500 free and 800 free and silver in the 400 free.
Tuncel’s best converted LCM-to-SCY times project her contending for A-finals in both the 500 free and 1650 free at NCAA Championships, but the question is whether she can regain (or at least come close to) her peak form from 2021. She hasn’t set a lifetime best in two years, going from 15:55.23 (2021) to 16:13.68 (2022) t0 16:18.53 (2022) in the 1500 free and 8:21.91 (2021) to 8:24.33 (2022) to 8:35.10 (2023) in the 800 free.
Tuncel’s top LCM (SCY conversion) times include:
- 200 free: 1:59.70 (1:44.95)
- 400 free: 4:06.25 (4:35.91)
- 800 free: 8:21.91 (9:22.36)
- 1500 free: 15:55.23 (15:36.50)
- 200 fly: 2:11.54 (1:55.98)
In December of 2020, Tuncel burst onto the international scene by breaking the world junior record in the SCM 1500 free (15:45.29) at Turkish Nationals in Istanbul.
How about academic eligibility? Predictability ? It is a university. With requirements. If to be a scholarship participant. Is there a slot? More to this then swim ability, and language. In classroom and deck.
The way this is written is pretty ironic.
I’m sure she can form sentences in English at a higher standard than what I just read.
Absolutely.
American education quality has gone to the dogs.
I am certainly aware that for some, the first year of university/college in the US is pretty much the equivalent academically of the final year of secondary school/A level study in England.
The british empire mentality is still alive and well. What a broad strokes comment. Btw I grew up in the uk so I have insight into both education systems.
I wasn’t being rude, or suggesting things are inferior there. Far from it. We have many questionable ‘universities’ in the UK. I was stating this as being what people I know have told me. Their ‘children’ had sports’ scholarships to the US recently and said that their freshman year was on par with their second year of A level study. It makes sense to me, given US degrees are generally 4 years long, whereas undergrad degrees are three here.
Baby, that’s everywhere. More of a reflection of university core curriculums and intro level classes rather than England having particularly higher standards.
Who are you calling ‘baby’? That is very odd!
Some of the best academic colleges in the US don’t offer any sports scholarships. The Ivy League in particular among others. To judge the USA on sport scholarship experiences only is limiting to say the least.
The first year of most British degrees is at roughly that level too and the program is only three years.
Perhaps that is your experience. However, it isn’t mine, nor that of my now adult children, who all studied science degrees at prestigious universities, including one who did medicine at Cambridge.
Why would you even mention “did medicine at Cambridge”? Medicine is a graduate level program, so why would you even mention it in a discussion about undergraduate level programs?
Medicine is not a graduate level programme in the UK. Some students do study medicine after getting a different degree, but the majority of medical students do it as their first degree. At Cambridge it is an MB BChir degree (Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery), which takes 6 years. At other universities they get an MB BS qualification. Even for those who study the graduate entry medicine course (4 years) it is an undergraduate level course.
Your opinions on the American education system and how you come across would be the equivalent of me saying that all English people come across as arrogant and elite. Now I know that not to be the case. I have English friends who are both non judgmental and reasonable thinking individuals. That having been said if my lens was your experiences and your friends experiences then I could similarly conclude all English people were elite and arrogant.
Your comment makes little sense.
I made my comment based on MY experience, not yours, nor anyone else’s. Yes, I learned about a few other people’s experience here, but that does not invalidate mine. This might be an American site, but those from elsewhere have opinions too, and they should not be considered judgmental just because they differ from yours.
From what your comments state you have absolutely no personal experience of the American collegiate experience. So before you go making comments like your initial comment you might want to get better educated on the system over here before relying on the unique perspective of a few friends. Your friends experiences so far might not take into account the fact that in the first year academic advisors at colleges adjust class workloads for athletes to help them better balance and assimilate into the system. But no doubt your friends kids are way too intelligent and being athletic elites would never need such assistance.
My final words on this subject…if you look at my original comment, you will see that I used the words “for some…”. I was not claiming this to be the case for all, at all universities/colleges.
Very intense training and psychological pressure that starts at an early age always causes premature wear and tear. It’s no secret.
She only know been informed? We’re they actively trying to leave her out to dry?
In all honesty the United States had an administrative competently crisis. No one is talking about though since they are cushy jobs often gained through connections.
If you believe what she’s saying…
We can only form opinion based on what’s written in this article.
If you have more verified information, please tell us and with verifiable link.
Jen (New athletic director) cleaning things up?
Merve’s problem is the same as the others training in the same team. She was under a very heavy physical and psychological burden. She suffered physical damage to her waist. And she no longer has the same desire to swim. It is very sad to see one of the greatest swimmers Turkey has produced like this. Where are the others who work in the same team and are successful?
What??
I guess USC is taking admissions a little more serious nowadays.
USC started school on August 21. If she is just finding out there is an admission problem I’d agree. It’s definitely a USC Admissions problem.
FWIW, I think UCLA just started classes?
She may consider ASU which has a new woman’s coach who was an international swimmer herself, has a strong group of international swimmers and strong LCM training.