Swiss star Julia Ullmann shines for Arizona State

PHOENIX – The first time Gabi Ullmann saw her daughter in the water, she didn’t see a future national team swimmer or an NCAA record‑breaker.

“When I saw her first swimming, I think it was maybe drowning, because she was always afraid of water when she was little,” Ullman said, laughing at the memory. “Really afraid.”

However, that fear didn’t last long, and by 4, Julia Ullmann was swimming regularly. 

“I saw the fast and grown‑up swimmers,” Julia said. “I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, you’re so fast. I want to be as fast as they are one day.’”

By 6, she was so hooked that she joined the Limmat Sharks Zurich Club Team in her native Switzerland. 

Despite her newfound desire to be as fast as they were, the reality wasn’t so straightforward.

“She never has been the fastest one,” Gabi said. “There had always been one or two girls in her age group faster. But for her, it was a challenge, not a frustration.”

That mindset would carry her from swimming with sharks to the Swiss national team, then 5,753 miles to Arizona State, where she has become one of the most versatile swimmers in the program and a potential Olympian for Switzerland in 2028.

But the story didn’t start with medals or records. It started with her big brother.

“I always wanted to do what he was doing,” she said. “He was someone I really looked up to.”

Her father, a triathlete, nudged both kids toward the water, but it was the older sibling rivalry that fueled her.

“She always was trying to compete, to follow him as fast as possible,” Gabi said. “It was the best training for her.”

At Limmat, she learned everything from every stroke and every distance to every lane, as Swiss clubs don’t specialize early.

“From 6 to 12, you kind of just swim everything,” Julia said. “You don’t focus on only one stroke.”

In 2018, her coach called with news she didn’t expect.

“He was like, ‘Yeah, you made it into the national team,’” Julia said. “And I was like, ‘No way.’”

Her mother remembers the moment just as vividly.

“She was very young,” Gabi said. “First, we couldn’t believe it. ‘Your kid is in the Swiss national team.’ Oh, OK. What does this mean?”

That call-up meant a new wave of responsibility, pressure and duty to represent her country on the national stage. 

“It’s not just about swimming the race,” Julia said. “It’s about handling pressure, learning new strategies and staying motivated. I’ve definitely become more confident.”

After leaving Limmat Sharks, Julia joined SchwimmClub Uster, and her new coach, Pablo Kutscher, saw the same thing.

“What impressed me from the beginning was her technical quality and her professionalism,” he said. “She had already achieved success at the international junior level, and she always approached training with purpose.”

When contemplating the next step in her career, Julia always wanted to go to the United States for college. So much so that when she committed to Arizona State, she didn’t set foot in Tempe until she moved there.

“I didn’t go on any visits,” she said. “It was kind of a gut feeling.”

It’s not uncommon, ASU coach Herbie Behm said.

“She committed without taking a visit,” he said. “Most of our internationals just do it all virtually. We show them around campus with a phone.”

After her first interaction with Behm, Julia was sold on the ASU process.

“Herbie is a coach that puts a lot of thought and knowledge and effort into writing a workout,” she said. “That makes him a trustworthy coach.”

While moving across the world was a big step, her parents gave her permission to try and permission to fail.

“Try it,” Gabi told her. “You can come home always. If it is after two months, three months, or a year, it doesn’t matter. The worst thing that could happen is you can’t speak perfect English. When you never try it, you will never know, and you will think your whole life, ‘What would happen if I had done it.’”

Two weeks before she was supposed to arrive in Tempe, Julia went to Rome with her family, and while walking down a set of stairs, she slipped.

“She actually broke her ankle, like a week, maybe two weeks before she came to school,” Behm said. “I was worried she was not going to have a great career starting with that.”

She needed emergency surgery and arrived at school with scars that are still visible today.

“Every time seeing those, I’m glad she healed from that,” Behm said. “Because that is what she’s really good at.”

As she was getting settled in, Julia barely spoke.

“She was actually pretty shy,” Behm said. “It took probably nine months before her sense of humor came out.”

But as she worked and grew into her own, she became one of the most decorated swimmers in the Big 12.

Her accolades now include being named a 2026 NCAA Second Team All‑American, a three-time All‑American and a four-time Big 12 champion. She was also the 2024–25 Big 12 Women’s Freshman Swimmer of the Year and has been an NCAA Championships selection for two straight years.

The best part is that she just finished her sophomore season.

“She has set the school record in our 100 butterfly five or six times now,” Behm said.

As she has continued to develop, her versatility has prospered.

“She swam 200 IM and got second at Big 12s, a race she never even swam before,” he said. “She’s been a part of every relay except the 4×200 free.”

She has also grown into the leader her freshman self couldn’t have imagined.

“She is leading the team in practices, getting other people excited,” he said. “Every girl on the team loves her. She’s super easy to get along with.”

Over time, Julia has come to appreciate how different this experience has been for her.

“You feel like you’re part of something bigger,” she said. “In Switzerland, you race for yourself. Here, you race for your team.”

When she returns home in December and during the summer months, she trains with SchwimmClub Uster.

“She has become a more complete athlete,” Kutscher said. “Confident, humble and a great teammate.”

Her presence and experience are invaluable to the club when she returns home. 

“She brings experience from international competition and from the NCAA environment,” Kutscher said. “Her presence motivates other swimmers. She has become an important part of our team culture.”

Julia’s future career goals are lofty.

“Maybe the Olympic team in 2028,” she said. “It’s definitely a big goal of mine.”

But so is the support and belief system behind her.

“I think she could win medals at the Olympics and win medals at the World Championships,” Behm said. “She’s talented enough, driven enough and she does all the other things well.”

Kutscher echoes that sentiment.

“She certainly has the qualities required to compete for places on the biggest stages,” he said.

And her mother, who once watched her daughter go from floundering to flourishing, believes it, too.

“I wish her dreams would come true,” Gabi said. “That she can go to the Olympics.”

But more than anything else, Gabi desires one thing for Julia, and it has nothing to do with the pool.

“There’s also a world next to swimming. It’s not just swimming,” she said. “As a mom, I wish she would be happy … healthy and happy.”

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