Swimming Legend Missy Franklin Announces Pregnancy

Missy Franklin announced via Instagram that she is pregnant and expecting to give birth to her and husband Hayes Johnson‘s first child this August.

Both Franklin and Johnson are retired American swimmers and have been married to each other since September 2019.

When Franklin retired in 2018, she said that “I began to realize that my greatest dream in life, more so than Olympic gold, has always been becoming a mom.”

Missy Franklin had one of the most successful swimming careers of the 21st century, winning gold in both the 100 and 200 backstrokes at the 2012 Olympics, as well as gold in the 4×100 medley and 4×200 freestyle, and bronze in the 4×100 freestyle. The 200 backstroke was an individual world record for Franklin, lowering the mark to a 2:04.06. That record stood for nearly 7 years until Regan Smith broke it with a 2:03.35 in 2019.

Franklin also contributed to a world record in he 4×100 medley relay. Franklin swam the backstroke leg in a 58.50 and was followed by Rebecca Soni with a 1:04.82 breast split, Dana Vollmer with a 55.48 in the fly, and Allison Schmitt closed with a 53.25 freestyle leg. Together they lowered the world record to a 3:52.05. That record stood until 2017 when Kathleen Baker, Lilly King, Kelsi Dahlia, and Simone Manuel brought it down to a 3:51.55 in 2017.

Franklin has also set two short course World Records, swimming a 2:00.03 200 backstroke at the 2011 World Cup in Germany, along with a 4×100 medley relay at the 2011 Duel in the Pool. There, she swam the freestyle leg, contributing to a 3:45.56 WR along with Natalie Coughlin (back), Rebecca Soni (breast), and Dana Vollmer (fly). Her 200 back short course record stood until Katinka Hosszu swam a 1:59.23 in 2014. The medley relay record stood until 2015 when Courtney Bartholomew, Katie Meili, Kelsi Dahlia, and Simone Manuel hit a 3:45.20 in 2015.

Franklin swam in the NCAA for two seasons, racing for the Cal Bears between 2013 and 2015. While there, she won the 200 freestyle in American record time and picked up silver in the 500 and bronze in the 100. In her second year at Cal, she won the 200 IM, 100 freestyle, and 200 backstroke titles. After the 2015 NCAA Championships, Franklin made the decision to turn pro.

Throughout her career, Franklin has collected a total of 11 gold, 2 silver, and 3 long course World Championships medals. Her 6 gold medals at the 2013 World Championships set a record for the most gold medals won by a female swimmer at a single edition of the World Championships.

She also has won 2 short course Worlds silvers, and 1 gold, 2 silvers, and a bronze at Pan Pacs.

Missy Franklin picked up one final Olympic medal in 2016 when she won gold as a prelims swimmer of the 4×200 freestyle relay. In December 2018, Franklin announced her retirement from the sport.

Hayes Johnson swam collegiately for Texas, racing for the team at NCAA Championships in both 2009 and 2010. Johnson’s top national ranking came in his freshman year when he finished 20th in the 200 backstroke at NCAAs with a 1:42.18. Johnson raced at both the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Trials, along with the 2009 World Championships trials.

Prior to his collegiate career, Johnson raced at the 2008 FINA World Junior Championships where he just missed the 200 backstroke podium, hitting a 2:01.18 for fourth.

Since their retirement, both Franklin and Johnson have stayed connected to the sport and recently launched a swimming merchandise store called SwimSwag.