Matthew Richards Swimmer

Matt Richards was an Olympic and world champion by the age of 20 - and he is now preparing for a busy programme at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

A series of brilliant performances at the Aquatics GB Swimming Championships included Matt winning out in the 200m Freestyle final, in what was arguably the most competitive domestic race in the history of British swimming. That was off the back of his involvement at the 2024 World Championships in Doha, helping to secure the Men’s 4x100m Freestyle Relay for Paris in the middle of a busy training block for himself and winning a Mixed 4x100m Medley Relay medal in the process.

Matt enjoyed a superb competition at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, triumphing with a perfectly-timed finish in the 200m Freestyle to win gold, before contributing to the Men’s 4x200m Freestyle Relay victory - and breaking the British record in the 100m Freestyle. He also claimed Mixed 4x100m Freestyle Relay bronze.

Previous to that, the 2022 World Championships provided Richards with his first medal at the competition, as he took bronze after swimming the heats in the 4x200m Freestyle Relay. His time with Team Wales at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham  saw the swimmer collect a quartet of fourth placed finishes, before the European Championships in Rome provided him with a bronze, silver and gold in three relay events.

Matthew’s preparations for a busy second summer of senior international competition continued with the 2022 British Swimming Championships. The British Swimming Bath Performance Centre swimmer made the final in both the 100m & 200m Freestyle, finishing fourth and seventh respectively. 

It was a sensational Olympic debut for teenager Richards, with a gold medal and European record being won in the Men’s 4x200m Freestyle Relay. This, coupled with just narrowly missing out on the final in the 4x100m Freestyle Relay, topped off a brilliant summer, with a look towards more medals on the international stage in the coming years. 

The former Royal Wolverhampton athlete - who now trains under Jol Finck at the Bath National Centre - was a European Junior champion in the Men's 100m Freestyle back in 2019.

After the unique disruptions of 2020, the 18-year-old ensured his place on the plane to Tokyo by swimming inside the consideration mark in the same event at the British Swimming Selection Trials in 2021, a result and personal best that secured him silver behind Duncan Scott. He also finished in the top three of a stacked 200m Freestyle showpiece.

Richards made his senior international debut for Britain at May's European Championships in Budapest, where he followed up that earlier junior success by becoming European senior champion as part of the heats effort that helped GB clinch Mixed 4x100m Medley Relay triumph.

Two silver medals were also secured as part of the strong Men's 4x100m and 4x200m Freestyle quartets, setting him up well for action at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre.