She came close in 2004, but didn’t quite make it. During her 2004 campaign, Nott was cut from the team in the last qualifying round. For 2008, though, she was one of the first named to the Olympic Team.

“I came pretty close last time around, so I feel like it just means even more this time, because I’ve put almost four more years of work into it,” Nott said.

In the last four years, Nott has changed many things, but the most notable change came when she teamed up with new duet partner Christina Jones. Teaming up with Jones helped to relieve the pressure of making the team, Nott said.

Jones agreed.

“Andrea and I had the least amount of pressure on us, for sure,” Jones said. “I think Andrea and I had it easiest out of anyone.”

That’s not to say Nott’s road to the Olympic team was a cakewalk. Just to be eligible for the selection process, she had to qualify for U.S. Nationals with her club, the Santa Clara Aquamaids. Once a swimmer qualifies for nationals, she must complete an individual element, or maneuver, to be considered for the first phase of the selection process.

Once a swimmer qualifies for the first phase, there are four more phases to complete before final selections are made. In each phase, more swimmers are eliminated, until only nine remain.

Perhaps more difficult than the qualifying procedure, however, is the constant worry of when her exercise induced asthma might kick in.

“It’s kind of always on my mind because I’m worrying what will happen if I’m not keeping it under control. Some days it’s really hard because I don’t know when it’s going to be a bad day,” Nott said. “In a sport where holding your breath is the main thing, I want my lungs to be as full of air as possible.”

Other challenges she faces include flexibility issues and overtraining. Since she spends nearly eight hours a day at practice, Nott worries that she sometimes may be working too much.

“I think that, for me, it’s a constant struggle between having everybody synchronized and matched and having everybody doing the right thing and then maybe sometimes I think we could fall into overdoing it,” Nott said. “It’s just hard to tell. It’s a fine line. Tiredness is a big factor. We train all day.”

To relax after a long day of training, Nott likes to spend time with her family, and when she has time, cook dinner. Her favorite things to cook are “healthy things that are good” for her.

“When I have roommates on the team I like to cook dinner for them sometimes. That’s fun,” Nott said. “I like to do salmon, asparagus. I like to do chicken and pasta. And I really like to put a whole bunch of things in salad.”

Cooking helps Nott to relax and forget about her day-to-day challenges. If anything, she’s glad to have made it where she is today and to finally have made an Olympic team, she said.

“You really feel grateful to the people along the way that have helped you—our past teammates, our coaches, the people that raised us through synchronized swimming and the old teammates that inspired and encouraged us along the way,” she said. “I wouldn’t be here without them.”