Olympic gold medalist Evgeny Rylov has announced his formal retirement from competitive swimming after more than 10 years.
In a video posted to Instagram by the Russian Swimming Federation and Rylov, the Russian Swimming Federation said:
“Every great sports story eventually comes to an end.
For Evgeny Rylov, it was a journey of grueling training, overcoming challenges, and navigating the highs and lows—all culminating in triumphant victories and well-deserved accolades.
Thank you for your dedication to the sport, your champion’s spirit, and the emotions you shared with millions of fans 💪🏻 🫂
Good luck in this new chapter of your life, Zhenya!”
Rylov was one of the best backstrokers in the world from 2015 until 2022. He made his senior international debut at the 2015 World Championships in Kazan, where he won the bronze medal in the 200 backstroke, setting a national record time of 1:54.60. In the 100 back, he finished 7th with his 53.23.
The following summer, he raced at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, again winning the bronze medal in the 200 backstroke in a new European record time of 1:53.97. He also qualified for the final in the 100 backstroke, touching in 52.74 to finish 6th.
At the 2017 World Championships, he picked up his first major international gold medal, winning the 200 backstroke in another new European record time of 1:53.61. He also won a bronze medal in the 400 medley relay, swimming 52.89 on the backstroke leg of the National Record 400 medley relay team.
He would go on to lower the Long Course European record in the 200 backstroke a few more times in his career before setting his lifetime best of 1:53.23 at the 2021 Russian Nationals to qualify for the Olympic Team. In Tokyo, he won both backstroke events, swimming an Olympic record 1:53.27 in the 200 back and a European record 51.98 in the 100 back.
He held the European record in the 100 backstroke until Italy’s Thomas Ceccon broke it en route to his 51.60 World Record, and he held the 200 backstroke record until Hubert Kos swam 1:53.19 at the World Championships last summer.
Rylov’s last international competition was the 2021 European Short Course Championships, where he withdrew from the meet after finishing 4th in the 100 backstroke prelims, failing to advance to semifinals since he was the 3rd fastest Russian, and 4th in the semifinals of the 200 backstroke. He withdrew before the final.
In March of 2022, Rylov, who is also a staff sergeant in the Moscow Oblast Police in Lobnya, appeared on stage at a pro-war rally shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine wearing his two Olympic medals.
Shortly after his appearance, swimwear brand Speedo announced they would be terminating their sponsorship deal with Rylov. Just days later, he announced he would not be competing at the 2022 World Championships in support of Russian Paralympic Athletes who were banned from competition at the 2022 Winter Paralympic Games.
The same day as Rylov’s announcement, World Aquatics (who was still operating under FINA at the time) announced all Russian and Belarusian athletes would be banned from the 2022 World Championships.
The following month, FINA announced that Rylov would be suspended for 9 months due to his participation in the rally, though the ban was ultimately rendered moot by the overall AQUA ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes.
Rylov continued to race in Russia through his ban and after, most recently swimming at the 2025 Russian Nationals. There, he finished 13th in the 50 backstroke, 14th in the 100 backstroke, and 4th in the 200 backstroke.
While Rylov would likely not have been eligible to compete as a neutral athlete due to his public support of the war and announcing he would refuse to sign any political declaration that he was anti-war in order to compete, World Aquatics lifted the ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes earlier this year. This means that Rylov would likely have been allowed to return to the pool this summer had he not retired.
Rylov will retire with four Olympic medals (2 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze), eight long course World Championships medals (2 gold, 3 silver, 3 bronze), and seven SC World Championships medals (3 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze).
