TODAY Sports Q&A: London Olympics superstar Missy Franklin will join some of the world’s top swimmers at the FINA World Cup hosted at the OCBC Aquatic Centre from Oct 3 to 4. The American swimmer talks to TODAY about her competitive debut in Singapore, and her swimming career – including her experience of turning professional at the age of 19

Q: Good to have you in Singapore soon, Missy. What events will we see you in at the FINA World Cup?

Franklin: I believe I am scheduled to swim the 100/200 back and freestyles. Possibly a couple of the 50s! But I think at each stop my coach and I will assess and decide the best events for me to swim in.

Q: How excited are you about racing here in Singapore, and what do you think of the competition that you are going to face, particularly with Emily Seebohm and Katinka Hosszu expected to compete in the 200m freestyle as well?

Franklin: I am so excited for the great competition in the upcoming World Cup. I want to do well, but my performance (as far as the specific time) is not crucial moving forward. What I really want to gain from this circuit is more long course racing and international racing experience.

Q: You competed recently at the FINA World Championships in Kazan. How would you rate your performance there?

Franklin: I don’t really believe in rating a performance because I think there were some wonderful things to take away from Kazan and also some disappointments. It was really hard not being able to defend my titles in the backstrokes, but at the same time I walked away with five medals and helped my team break a World Record in the mixed free relay with one of the best finishes I’ve ever had in my career.

It was an incredible learning experience, like every meet is.

Q: You suffered a back injury last year – how did that affect your swimming, and are you back to your best now?

Franklin: I think I still hold that fear (of injury) a little bit. I am so grateful for the countless people that have helped me so much in overcoming this, but it is something now that I will always have to be conscious of. I am doing everything I can to strengthen everything that needs to be strengthened and I am extremely confident moving forward that this will never happen again.

And if I ever do experience any kind of pain, I now know exactly how to handle it.

Q: Your long-time club coach, Todd Schmitz, said in a recent interview that you haven’t quite had the same confidence in yourself as before, and you are lacking a little bit of fire. What are your thoughts on that?

Franklin: I do agree with that. My injury last year was the first injury of my career and really one of the first meets I’ve ever been really disappointed in. It takes a lot to gain the same confidence back that I had before my injury. I think going through Worlds this summer really helped regained my confidence, not necessarily because of my results but because of how well my back held up and how much I fought in every race. Every race and every practice is an opportunity to build confidence.

Q: You also turned professional in March this year – how has life as a professional athlete been for you so far?

Franklin: I think that biggest difference of being a professional is all the travel involved. In addition to the travel I already had for meets and training, I also have travel for work with my sponsors. But my sponsors are so incredible and work with me on my schedule. They always make sure that my coach is with me so we can carve out training time because everyone knows that my training comes first. There are also many advantages to being professional, including all of the incredible support I have from these companies, and feeling like I belong to new families.

Q: Two months after turning pro, you also chose to leave University of California, Berkeley, to return to Denver to train at your club team, Colorado Stars, which raised a few eyebrows within the swimming fraternity. Can you tell us a little but more about why you made that decision?

Franklin: Choosing to leave Berkeley was the hardest decision I have ever had to make. I was going through not only a career transition, but a life transition, and being with my family in a time like this was something that was extremely important to me. I miss my Cal Bear family every second of everyday, and this is by far the largest sacrifice I have ever had to make, and I am so appreciative of the support I have been receiving.

Q: You were a standout performer at the 2012 Olympic Games with four gold medals in London. How did that experience change you? How different is the Missy Franklin of today compared to three years ago?

Franklin: Very different and very much the same simultaneously! I have learned so much the past three years but I am still the same old me! I have really started becoming the woman I want to be while retaining my positivity and optimism.

Q: After that breakout performance in London, what are you aiming for at the 2016 Olympics?

Franklin: I really haven’t thought too much about that yet. I know my personal goals and targets, but none of those include a specific medal count. My goals at meets revolve around the times I would like to accomplish and being the best I have ever been before.