US Olympian Andrew Seliskar Announces Retirement

Tokyo Olympian Andrew Seliskar announced his retirement from competitive swimming today on Instagram. Seliskar, 25, has been a fixture in swimming headlines over the last decade, with success as an age grouper, college athlete, and post-grad.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ca281XFvvtg/?utm_medium=copy_link

Time to hang up the towel. I’ve made the decision to retire from competitive swimming.

Swimming has given me so much. I’m honored to have represented Team USA, and fortunate to have been surrounded by so many incredible people during my time competing in the sport.

I was lucky to be in the right place, at the right time; To be a part of teams across the country who pushed me everyday in the water. The coaches and teammates I’ve had have influenced my life well beyond the pool, and I will always thankful for that.

Thank you @ncaptysons@themcleanmarlins @calmenswim@lacurrent and @usaswimming for the amazing opportunity to learn and train with your world-class programs.

To my coaches and family: I can’t say thank you enough. I’m proud of all that we were able to achieve, and grateful for your guidance and support. Thank you for building the foundation on which I now live my life.

Seliskar grew up in McLean, Virginia, and was part of an incredibly strong group at Nation’s Capital. He first represented the United States internationally when he made the 2012 Junior Pan Pacs team in the 200 IM, between his freshman and sophomore years of high school.

Over the next few years, he demonstrated incredible versatility that presaged what we’ve increasingly seen from the top end of US age groupers. He broke multiple National Age Group records in events like the 100 yard breaststroke and the 200m IM, and he set a junior world record in the 200 fly. Representing Thomas Jefferson High School, he broke the national high school record in the 100 breast.

He committed to the Cal Bears as a senior in high school, and by the time he headed into college, he had the following best times:

• 50 free – 19.89
• 100 free – 43.19
• 200 free – 1:34.94
• 500 free – 4:16.17
• 100 back – 46.89
• 200 back – 1:41.37
• 100 breast – 51.78
• 200 breast – 1:51.57
• 100 fly – 46.13
• 200 fly – 1:41.55
• 200 IM – 1:42.84
• 400 IM – 3:37.52

Those times in bold would have made the A-final at the 2015 NCAA Championships. It’s fairly rare for a high school boy to have times that could score at NCAAs — to have multiple A-final times, in three different disciplines, is virtually unheard of.

Seliskar went on to be a lynchpin of a Cal team that finished 2nd to Texas each of his first three years. He went 9-9 in A-finals his first three years at Cal, and was a major relay contributor, but he headed into his senior year without having won an individual event.

But the uber-versatile Seliskar delivered at his very last year NCAAs, throwing down arguably one of the best NCAAA performances of all-time. He swept the 200 IM, 200 free, and the 200 breast, becoming the 4th-fastest ever in the 200 free (1:30.14), 2nd fastest ever in the 200 IM (1:38.14), 3rd-fastest ever in the 200 breast (1:48.70). Additionally,  he split 44.32 on the 4MR fly leg and anchored Cal’s free relays in 18.40/41.10, securing another win in the 200 free relay, and more importantly, helping the Bears end a four-year Texas win streak.

During the early part of his college career, Seliskar’s international career stalled a bit, but he bounced back at the 2018 US Nationals by winning the 200 free and securing a place at the Pan Pacific Championships and the 2019 World Championships. That performance led to winning an individual silver medal in the 200 free and a gold in the 4×200 free at Pan Pacs, as well as a bronze in the 4×200 at the 2019 Worlds.

Seliskar’s career representing the USA in international competition culminating in making the US Olympic team last summer as part of the 4×200 free relay.

Additionally, Seliskar joined the LA Current of the International Swim League after college, and helped the Current to ISL final appearances in 2019 and 2020.

With Townley Haas also retiring, and with Blake Pieroni recently announcing that he’s having knee surgery and will miss Worlds Trials, at least three of the seven men who swam on the US’s 4×200 free relay last summer will not be competing this summer.