[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 132 (Wednesday, July 28, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S5117]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      CONGRATULATING LYDIA JACOBY

  Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I don't come here this morning to speak 
to that at this moment but to just give a strong Alaska ``attagirl'' 
shout-out to Lydia Jacoby.
  A few days ago, most people outside of the State of Alaska had 
probably never heard of Lydia, 17 years old, from Seward, AK. Seward is 
a pretty small community in the south central part of the State. It is 
a coastal community. It is a fishing community. It is a hard-working 
community.
  Lydia is a typical high school student at Seward High School, except 
she is a swimmer, and is she an extraordinary swimmer. To see the news 
the other night of her gold, of her unexpected and spectacular win, was 
a moment of pride for all Alaskans, a moment of pride for Americans 
that just makes your heart swell. So I wanted to come to the floor and 
share that.
  I actually was able to start my morning off early, but in a good way, 
by being able to call Lydia--she is over in Japan, obviously--and to 
speak with her directly and offer my congratulations. Mr. President, 
you can tell when people are grinning ear to ear, even though you are 
separated by thousands of miles and you are talking over a telephone. 
This morning, Lydia Jacoby was grinning ear to ear as I was sharing my 
words of congratulations and she, just her exuberance and delight for 
being able to represent the United States at these Olympics in this 
way.
  We are extraordinarily proud. Lydia has put Seward and certainly 
Seward High School on the map. Folks are coming up to me saying: Gosh, 
I didn't realize you didn't have Olympic-meter swimming pools in most 
of your communities. Well, that is true. Lydia did some training that I 
think most would say: It is going to be a long, hard slog to get to any 
Olympics.
  I think the dedication of this young woman has certainly played out. 
The support that she has received from her parents over the years, the 
support she has received from her community, is an example of just 
good, strong Alaska roots: everybody working hard and just doing your 
best on a daily basis.
  Lydia Jacoby has absolutely done her best. She set the gold standard, 
and we are just extraordinarily proud of this young Alaskan woman.

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