Sprinting to the Future

Nathan Adrian is a 2008 Olympic gold medalist and one of the top sprint freestylers in the United States. He is the American record holder in both sprint freestyle distances, the 50 and 100, in yards. He is currently a student at Cal, where he trains.

His Big Break

Adrian has been in the shadows for most his career – a young and talented swimmer before breaking out big-time in 2008. He took the entire year off before the Olympic Trials to train for the chance to make the Olympic Games, and ultimately it proved to be the right decision. At the 2008 Short Course World Championships, Adrian seemingly came from nowhere to win gold in the 100m freestyle. His successful ’08 campaign continued from there.  At the 2008 Olympic Trials, Adrian snuck into the final heat of the 100m freestyle after winning a swim-off. After that, his career took off. He finished fourth in the final heat of the 100m freestyle, qualifying for a spot on the men’s 400m freestyle relay in Beijing.  At the Olympics, he swam in the preliminary heat of the relay, and earned a gold medal after Jason Lezak assured an American victory later that night in dramatic fashion.

Momentum Building

Adrian has since established himself as one of the greatest short-course sprint freestylers in the world after an impressive 2009. Already the World Champion in the 100m event, Adrian broke two American records in each sprint freestyle at the NCAA Championships. He then won both the 50 and the 100 freestyle at the 2009 National Championships, earning a spot on the World Championship Team. At Worlds, Adrian solidified himself as an outstanding relay swimmer, anchoring the men’s 400m freestyle relay to another victory over the French. He also earned a gold medal in the men’s 400m medley relay.

Mythbuster

Adrian was recently featured on an episode of the popular scientific TV show Mythbusters, a show that tests wild and wacky theories. Adrian was featured on an episode that tested the theory that swimming in syrup is slower than swimming in water. Turns out the myth is true: Adrian went slower in the syrup.

Eyes Forward

Adrian continues to train at Cal-Berkeley and looks forward to more success in 2010 and beyond. The 6’6’’ swimmer hopes to find that elusive individual long-course gold medal, possibly at the next World Championships or at the London Olympics in 2012.

Olympian (2008)

1 Olympic Medal (gold)
2008 Olympics (Beijing)
GOLD
400m Freestyle Relay

5 World Medals (4 gold, 1 silver)
2009 World Championships (Rome)
GOLD
400m Freestyle Relay
400m Medley Relay

2008 SC World Championships (Manchester)
GOLD
100m Freestyle
400m Freestyle Relay
SILVER
400m Medley Relay