Royal Oak has Ties to Olympic Swimmer and Marathoner

Royal Oak has ties to two athletes getting ready for the start of the Summer Olympics in London this week.

Swimmer Peter Vanderkaay and marathoner Desiree Davila are on Team USA at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Vanderkaay, 28, is a three-time world champion Olympic Medalist (two gold, one bronze). This is his third consecutive trip to the summer Olympics.

Vanderkaay will compete in the 400-meter freestyle, one of the first events. The preliminary heats are at 5:47 a.m. (eastern time) July 28; the finals will be at 2:30 p.m. that day. 

Vanderkaay is the son of located at 1619 N. Main St.

The Modern Dentistry website explains that when the Royal Oak dentist and his wife Robin are not checking smiles, they are normally near a swimming pool where sons Christian, Peter, Alex and Dane "have fulfilled many dreams from simply finishing a race to Olympic Gold Medals in Athens and Beijing."

Davila, the fastest American distance runner right now, trains with the Kevin and Keith Hanson, owners of located at 3407 Rochester Road in Royal Oak.

She will compete in the women's marathon, which will be held at 6 a.m. (eastern time) Aug. 5.

'I never thought I would ever be an Olympian'

Vanderkaay elaborates on his pool resume and writes about his journey to the Olympics on his website, www.petervanderkaay.com.

"My journey in the sport of swimming began at age seven when I joined my first summer club team," he writes. "From there, I became involved with the Oakland Live Y’ers on a year round basis."

Vanderkaay studied and swam at the University of Michigan; In 2006 he was named the Big Ten Athlete of the Year. In addition to his Olympic titles, he is a three-time world champion. He lives and trains in Gainesville, Florida. His three brothers are also competitive swimmers.

In London, Vanderkaay will race in one of the first events of this year's Olympic games.

"I never thought I would ever be an Olympian but its funny how some things come together," Vanderkaay writes on his website. "My successes are truly a testament to those who have helped me along the way."

Distance running's fastest American woman is hurting

It was running that brought California native Desiree Davila to Rochester Hills seven years ago to train with the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project,

In 2011 she finished second — by 2 seconds — in the Boston Marathon. In that race, she clocked the fastest time ever by an American woman: 2:22:38.

Unfortunately Davila, who leaves for London Tuesday, is struggling with a right hip flexor tendon injury that has prevented her from training on solid ground, said Don Jackson, of Royal Oak. Jackson is the general manager of Hanson's Running Shop and an assistant coach with the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project.

Davila has spent the past few weeks training on an AlterG anti-gravity treadmill, which gently lifts her to avoid putting pressure on her hip.

"When she gets to London and has to run on solid ground, it's going to be a different story," Jackson said. "We are hoping for a miraculous turnaround."

The timing of Davila's injury did not leave an opportunity to bring on an alternate to replace her, Jackson said, so Davila still plans to represent Team USA in the Olympics marathon on Aug. 5. If she decides to withdraw from the race it won't be before she gets to London and has a chance to see if she can work through her injury on hard surfaces.

For the latest updates on Vanderkaay and Davila at the Olympics, follow Royal Oak Patch on Facebook.