By Sean Griffin on SwimSwam
After enduring a long battle with numerous shoulder injuries, including three dislocations, Canadian Olympian and current UCLA juniorKatrina Bellio made her return to competition last weekend at the Speedo Grand Challenge — her first meet in nearly two years.
The 20-year-old opened up about her journey on Instagram, writing, “After 3 shoulder dislocations, a labrum repair and bicep reconstruction, 6 cortisol injections, 2 frozen shoulders and almost hanging up the cap and goggles for good, I finally swam my first competition after 2 years.
“The last 24 months were the toughest of my life. The countless setbacks made ever returning back to swimming seem impossible. It’s still hard to believe that finally after 2 years I got to race for UCLA again.
“Without the constant love and support from @uclaswimanddive I truly don’t know where I’d be. I’ve been the happiest version of myself in a very long time these last two months, and I truly couldn’t have done it without my teammates, family, @uk_coach_karissa@ucla_coach_jordan and @endi.b88 for the constant support and encouragement that I could come back from everything I’ve been through.
“I truly cannot wait for what this new chapter of swimming will bring for me.”
Bellio’s best showing at the Grand Challenge, held in long course meters, was 7th in the 400 free (4:24.91). She also placed 9th in the 200 free (2:04.76), 23rd in the 200 back (2:24.78), and 32nd in the 100 free (59.55). All of her best times in these events come from April of 2022: 1:59.55 (200 free), 4:11.06 (400 free), 57.50 (100 free), and 2:17.98 (200 back).
During her freshman year with UCLA, Bellio competed at the 2023 NCAA Championships in the 800-yard free relay, helping UCLA to a 15th-place finish. She recorded the fastest split of any Bruin on that relay with ger 1:45.77 on the third leg.
Bellio swam in all 12 regular-season meets and the Pac-12 Championships that season, earning 10 individual wins across the 1000 free (five), 500 free (two), 1650 free (two), and 400 IM (one). At the Pac-12 Championships, she posted personal bests and reached the B Final in the 500 free (4:43.18, 11th) and 400 IM (4:13.25, 12th), while also finishing 6th in the 1650 free (16:22.96). Her 500 free time set a UCLA freshman record. She sat out both the 2023–24 and 2024–25 seasons due to the injuries.
On the international front, Bellio first made waves at the 2019 Junior World Championships, where she hit the wall 8th in the 200 free (2:00.25), 14th in the 1500 free (16:55.05), 14th in the 400 free (4:15.74), 15th in the 800 free (8:48.11), and 14th in the 400 IM (4:53.60). She also helped Canada win a bronze medal in the 4×200 free relay.
From there, Bellio qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she raced the 1500 free and touched the wall in 21st with a lifetime best of 16:24.37.
In 2022, she competed at the World Championships in Budapest, swimming both pool and open water events. She took 17th in the 800 free (8:45.67), finished 34th in the 10k open water race, and contributed to an 11th-place finish in the mixed 4x1500m open water relay.
Following Budapest, Bellio raced at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, where she touched 5th in the 800 free (8:42.07), 7th in the 200 free (2:00.05), and 9th in the 400 free (4:15.37).
Read the full story on SwimSwam: World Juniors Medalist Katrina Bellio Returns To Racing After Three Shoulder Dislocations