Tristan's Story
Fast Facts
Sport: Swimming
Event: 200m backstroke
Olympic History: Tokyo 2020
Highlights: 2019 World Cup silver medal in 200m backstroke
Club: Southport Olympic Swim Club
Year Born: 1996
State Born: NSW
About Tristan
Having experienced the high point of any sporting career, competing at an Olympic Games, Tristan has decided to move on and see what else life has to offer.
The 26-year-old Southport swimmer placed 10th in his one Olympic event in Tokyo, the 200m backstroke, but then declared on social media that he was having difficulty rekindling the competitive fire. “After taking the time to consider my options, I’ve decided to hang up the goggles and step away from the pool,” he wrote. “I wish nothing but the best to my competitors and friends who continue to face the monumental grind that is competitive swimming.”
Still, in the six-year period that he devoted himself to the pool, Tristan achieved an extraordinary amount. He broke into the international arena at the FINA World Cup meet in Singapore in 2019, winning silver in the 200m backstroke and bronze in the 100m backstroke.
That gave him the incentive to push on in training under coach Glenn Baker and in 2021 he was rewarded when he claimed his first national titles in the 100m (54.83sec) and 200m backstroke (1.56.40) events.
Come the Olympic trials in Adelaide, those times would hold up pretty well. He swam 54sec neat to claim third spot in the 100m backstroke – with Mitch Larkin and Isaac Cooper claiming the two Olympic berths – and then 1.56.44 to claim the 200m title. He was heading to Tokyo.
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