There’s a competitive fire that burns inside Summer Harrison every day of her life.

Take a look at some of her old swimming videos. As an 8-year-old, she’s in a pool, telling her mom and dad to time her.

“Daddy, I’m going to win,” she says. “Daddy, I’m going to win.”

Scan back to the entire pool and she’s the only one in it. There’s nobody to race — nobody to “beat” — but that doesn’t slow her down one bit.

“I think it’s just kind of in my blood,” the current San Diego State senior said Tuesday in a phone interview. “I like the color blue, but I like gold No. 1. I really enjoy grinding through and putting in a lot of work to enjoy the competition of (swimming). I’ve been competitive since I came out of the womb.”

That characteristic matched with parents who were both collegiate swimmers has taken Harrison on a special journey that continues next week at the Mountain West Conference championships in San Antonio.

The 2014 Mid-Pacific alumna, who holds three SDSU swimming records, will attempt to swim the school’s first sub-52.0 second 100 butterfly — her signature event.

Harrison also competes in the 200 butterfly, an event in which she also owns the school record, and the 50 freestyle.

It’s the 100 fly, however, that made Harrison a U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier in 2012 and ’16.

“Being able to qualify two times was really my peak,” Harrison said. “That definitely goes up there as something that has been my No. 1 goal since I was 8 years old, and I did it twice. I did it in 2012 and wouldn’t have been able to do it again if it wasn’t for San Diego State.”

Harrison has improved on each of her individual times every year with the Aztecs.

Ranked as the No. 2 swimmer in Hawaii out of high school, Harrison was also recruited by Virginia, Utah, Arkansas, TCU and Hawaii among other schools, but found the right balance in San Diego.

“The mainland is a different breed of everything, and I knew I wanted to experience something different, but not too extreme from Hawaii, so I didn’t want to go the East Coast or anything,” Harrison said. “San Diego was perfect.”

Harrison’s normal week consists of classes and 20 hours of swimming. But the work that goes into the sport exceeds just the time spent in the pool.

The team has a rigorous weight room routine and swimmers normally spend multiple sessions a day in the training room getting the latest treatments done to keep athletes in tip-top shape.

“We’re there at 6 a.m. on Mondays, lift weights, spend two hours in the pool, then get to class and then you’re back at the pool and in the training room,” Harrison said. “Go home. Get some school work done, then wake up and do it all over again.”

It’s a routine that has constantly evolved and gotten more time-consuming as Harrison has gotten older.

Ask any longtime swimmer and they will admit if they’re honest that doubt always creeps in. Every day, it’s the same lap in the pool, over and over again. The same stroke, the same breaths, the same routine, repeated one after the other and after the other.

“All of us go through that point in our season where we’re just like, ‘What am I doing with my life swimming laps and laps and laps?’ It can get to your head and you can freak out,” Harrison said. “I put so much pressure on myself to exceed expectations and to win all of the time, and if I didn’t win I felt like my well-being was being diminished completely.

“But I’ve grown up and learned to control my emotions better and I think this year has been so much fun and my best ever because I know I have nothing to lose at this point. I’ve done this since I was 8 years old. I know how to swim.”

At a competition this year, Harrison’s father, Sean, was on the pool deck and gave her some last words of encouragement.

“All right, swimmer, go swim like you’re a senior,” he shouted out.

It’s something that Harrison has thought about prior to every race since.

“I thought it was awesome because it’s so true,” Harrison said. “I’m completely at ease with swimming now as opposed to when I was younger. I felt so much angst about how I need to do this and I need to do that.

“So much of it is mental and I really think going to San Diego State has helped mold me into where I am today as a swimmer. Now is when the hard work pays off. I’m excited for conference because I think I’ll be able to go a lot faster and with the work I’ve put in, break some records.”

Records, mind you, that she already owns, but that’s who she is. She’s going to beat whatever opponent is in front of her.

Even if it’s herself.