65-Year-Old Mike LaMonica Wins Four Events, sets two new records at YMCA National Masters Champs

2026 YMCA National Masters Meet

• April 16-19, 2026
• Selby Aquatic Center, Sarasota, Florida
• SCY (25 yards)
• Timed Finals 
• Results (PDF)
• Results on Meet Mobile: 2026 YMCA National Master Meet

Even though Mike LaMonica only recently “aged up” to the 65-69 age group this year, he is already breaking records and making waves. At the recent YMCA National Masters Championship, he finished first in his age group in four individual events, and also swam on two winning relays.

His individual titles include:

• Men 65-69 50 Yard Butterfly: 27.16
• Men 65-69 200 Yard Butterfly: 2:15.63
• Men 65-69 100 Yard Butterfly: 58.23
• Men 65-69 100 Yard Freestyle: 55.64

In addition to his individual events, he also contributed to two winning relays:

• Mixed 65+ 200 Freestyle Relay (SCY): 1:52.82 (25.47 split)
• Men 65+ 200 Medley Relay (SCY): 2:03.53 (26.49 fly split)

In another strong showing, he swam a lead-off split of 55.37 in the Men 65+ 400 Freestyle Relay (SCY), contributing to an overall second place finish, in a time of 4:12.97.

With his recent swims, LaMonica now holds the YMCA 200 fly Masters Record in three different age groups: men’s 55-59, 60-64, and 65-69.

• Men 65-69 200 Fly (SCY): 2:15.63
• Men 60-64 200 Fly (SCY): 2:09.05
• Men 55-59 200 Fly (SCY): 2:05.78

His winning time of 58.23 in the 100 fly is also a new national YMCA Masters record.

LaMonica lives in Miami and swims and trains with the Gulliver Masters, where he also happens to be the coach! Coach Mike also trains several weeks out of the year with the Sarasota Sharks Masters, which he represents in competition. The Sharks boast a strong roster of Masters pool swimmers, while the Gulliver Masters team has a lot of open water and triathlon competitors among its members.

Beyond his personal accomplishments in the pool, he takes great pride in his connection with the sport and with the swimmers he leads. “The way we train at Gulliver stands up on a national level,” Coach Mike said. “Not all of our athletes compete, but all of our athletes train like competitors.”

From Miami to Sarasota, in a career that spans decades, LaMonica is still stepping onto the deck, up to the blocks and into the record books. And he’s not showing any signs of slowing down. “What a beautiful sport swimming is — at any age,” he said.