Father's Day Win Sends Morristown Native To Olympics For Second Time

MORRISTOWN, NJ — Swimmer Nic Fink is headed to his second Olympic Games, but the Morristown native was thinking of another accomplishment after hitting the wall Sunday night: Becoming a dad for the first time.

Fink won the 100-meter breaststroke event during U.S. Olympic swimming trials in Indianapolis, finishing in 59.08 seconds.

The 30-year-old had announced his wife Melanie Margalis Fink is expecting their first child, and pantomimed rocking a baby as he caught his breath in the pool. Margalis, who was part of the gold medal-winning team in the women's 4x200-meter freestyle in the 2016 Summer Olympics, was there to cheer him on.

"She's always supported me at these meets and been my biggest fan," he told reporters after the victory, adding that the couple has always been excited for one another's achievements. "She knows what all the steps are, and I get to share those things with her. It's really cool in that sense."

Fink had multiple World Championship gold medals under his belt when he swam in his first Olympics at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo, which were held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

He got a master's degree after competing in Tokyo, and now works full-time as an engineer in Dallas.

He told reporters that the baby boy is expected to arrive in September as he reflected on his Father's Day win.

“It’s one of those things that doesn’t really make sense to me,” Fink said Sunday. “I feel like I haven’t earned it yet. But the next (Father’s Day) will feel like one, for sure, after diapers and late nights and stuff like that.”

Fink attended The Pingry School before enrolling at the University of Georgia, where he completed an accomplished collegiate career. He had several scoring appearances in the NCAA Championships with the Bulldogs.

He had a difficult path in Olympic qualifiers, failing to finish in the top two at the 2012 and 2016 trials. He also fell short with a third-place showing in the 100-meter breaststroke during the 2021 qualifying rounds, before punching his ticket in the 200.

Fink finished in fifth place in that event at the Tokyo Olympics, just 0.8 seconds short of the bronze medalist's time.

Editor's note: We had failed to mention that Delbarton School graduate Jack Alexy, of Mendham, also qualified for the Olympic swim team in the 100-meter freestyle event in June.