Since graduating the United States Naval Academy in 2011, Edward King has thrived in both his military and athletic endeavors as a member of the United States National Rowing Team. After rowing with the lightweight men's four this past summer at the World Championships, King and his U.S. teammates now turn their attention to the 2016 Olympics. NavySports.com caught up with a King to talk about his experiences at the Academy, in the fleet and with the National Team.

Looking back what are your thoughts about your time as a Midshipman at the Naval Academy?

"I fondly look back on my time as a student at USNA. Recently, several occasions have found me back in Annapolis and with each visit to the Academy grounds, the flood of memories that I experience leave me filled with emotion and a sense of overwhelming pride. Not only did the quality of education far exceed my expectations at the time, the valuable life lessons I walked away with on commissioning day shaped who I am today. Watching the current Midshipmen going about their days on the yard makes me wish I could revisit bits of those formative years of my life. I met my best friends during that time, ones I would give my life for, and learned what values I personally hold dear. I worked hard, both in my studies and physical pursuits, but still managed to have an immense amount of fun and made memories that I will cherish forever. I am extremely proud to be an alumnus of such an amazing institution and believe firmly today in the ideals of duty, honor, and commitment the school is rooted upon."

What role did crew play on your life as a Mid?

"Hubbard Hall was a second home to me during my time at the Academy. From the moment I walked onto the team as a freshman, I was welcomed with exactly what I was looking for - a place to escape from the rest of the yard and push myself to my physical and mental limits. But it was the camaraderie of the team that was truly captivating for me. The atmosphere in the boathouse established by the varsity was a competitive brotherhood where respect was earned, never given. We were expected to maintain discipline and quiet work ethic was valued above all else. It was quite an amazing experience to completely and utterly exhaust yourself side-by-side with your brothers... for your brothers. I learned a lot about myself and honestly believe that it was within those walls where I first began to carry myself as a man. As is still the case today, the caliber of the Navy crew team and coaching staff was beyond reproach and it was there where I was set up to pursue rowing on the level I am competing on today."

Briefly explain your career in the fleet since graduating USNA

"After graduating in 2011, I was assigned to the Naval Academy Athletic Department on TAD orders allowing me to join up with the U.S. National Rowing Team and contribute to their effort that year at the Senior World Rowing Championships. After racing, I briefly worked at the Academy in the PE and Leadership department before moving out to San Diego to begin BUD/S - the entry level training for Naval Special Warfare. In late 2012, I graduated with BUD/S Class 295, and after several months of advanced training, picked up new orders to join the Information Dominance Community. After another few months of focused schooling, I took orders to NIOC, MD, where I would eventually join a team of IWOs conducting operations supporting fleet, joint and national level commanders. This is still my current duty station, however since checking in at the command, the goal of making the US Olympic Team has been a big part of what I've been working towards. After navigating through the Navy channels set up to support pursuits of this nature and with the help of my chain of command, I have been able to rejoin the National Rowing Team and continue my active duty work simultaneously. Although my Navy Career has taken on a more backburner role for the time being, I've had the honor of traveling around the world representing my country and the U.S. Navy with the goal of eventually being able to represent on the Olympic stage."

Speak about the success you've had with the U.S. National Team. Did your time at Hubbard Hall help influence those results?

"My time rowing on the Navy crew team set me up in a huge way for competing at the National Team level. As a result of the exceptional training and coaching I was receiving at Navy, I made my first U-23 Team the summer after my sophomore year. The next year I made the team again, where we won a bronze medal at the U-23 World Championships; the first medal for the U.S. Lightweight Team in several years. I then moved up to the Senior National Team where I've been fortunate enough to compete as a member of three U.S. World Championship teams; one in the LM8+ and two in the LM4-. We've had mixed results, some good and others mediocre, but more and more I think we are performing to our potential and the results are supporting that. Last summer at the World Cup in the LM4-, we came 4th overall just narrowly missing the medal stand. And again this past World's, we had a solid race from start to finish in the B-final, helping us finish 7th overall in the field-a result strong enough to qualify the United States for the Olympic Games next summer in Brazil. I really just love training hard and then seeing all the hard work come to fruition and pay off during racing. The mentality I still use today in approaching training and racing goes all the way back to my initial years in the sport and the focus, work ethic, and drive instilled in us at Hubbard Hall."

How have you balanced being in the fleet and training with the USNT?

"Having the dual pressures of my Navy career and my training for the National Team has been stressful and consuming at times, but overall I believe it has helped me grow to be a more professional and well rounded officer. It has been extremely rewarding to be able to represent both the United States and the Naval Officer Corps as an athlete all around the world. My focus the whole time since I first looked at starting to compete again has been to do as much as I could without letting quality in either suffer. Luckily for me, the pressure from the Navy side of things this whole time has been relatively light, allowing me to really throw a lot of effort into my training and ultimately see successful selection onto the World Championship teams each year. Looking ahead at 2016 and the Olympic Team selection and competition, I have been allowed an "excess leave" status, essentially removing me completely from the military for the remainder of the year. This step was taken in an effort to focus all my efforts towards training for and hopefully competing in the Games next summer. If all goes according to plan, after the competition next August, I will fall back into my job and continue work on my Naval career."

What are you individual and team prospects for the 2016 Olympic Games?

"I think the entire training squad is very excited for the competition next summer. Compared to previous years, the team as a whole is performing at a much higher level both on land and on the water. This will hopefully translate to a stronger international performance from the U.S. team than we've seen in the past. Individually, I can only hope to give it my best over the next few months of training and come out of selection successfully having made it into the boat actually heading to compete in the Games. It will certainly be an intense year of competition within the team, but I believe we are all aware that the ultimate goal is to send the fastest boat to Rio regardless of our individual aspirations. In the end, one can only hope that the countless hours of training will pay off and the American flag will fly on the medal stand next August. Go USA!"