Q: Practically speaking, how do you make it as a pro? What sacrifices do you have to make?
A: The summer is the season for water polo. We stay with the national team about three months per year. The other nine months we live and play in professional leagues in Europe. I've played in Moscow, Russia, Athens, Greece, Serbia, which is a great water polo country but not that much fun to live in, and Croatia. It's a full-time job: two practices per day and then games on weekends. There's really no endorsements. The only country in the world that really has endorsements for water polo is Hungary. It's their No. 1 national sport and those guys do pretty well.

Q:Was there anything about life as a professional athlete that surprised you?
A:When I first got done with college I was planning on going to one, maybe two, Olympics, and finishing when I was 20 years old and getting a job and being a normal person.