Van Mathias continues to write his comeback story, this time with short-course performances that topped anything he did during his college days at Indiana, blasting 49.93 in the 100 breast, and 18.72 in the 50 free in time trial races in Bloomington.
The time trials were an official event, timed with touchpads, and the times counting towards USA Swimming.
Mathias has made waves since returning to the sport after stepping away from competition following his 5th year at Indiana. He assumed the role of Director of Operations for the Hoosiers’ swimming program, a job he still holds while training in the water.
On January 24th, at a time trial event in Bloomington, Mathias raced his training partner Finn Brooks (who touched in 51.13) in the 100 breast. The 25-year-old Mathis blasted a lifetime best of 49.93, the fastest time of his career by over half a second from his 50.57 at the 2023 NCAA Championships.
This swim marks the 8th fastest performance in history, just ahead of Brooks’ 49.94 from last season’s Big Ten Championships, and makes Mathias the 6th fastest performer in the event ever. Mathias is now just the 7th swimmer ever to crack the 50-second barrier in the event.
100 Breast (SCY) Top 10 Performers All Time:
- Julian Smith- 49.51
- Liam Bell- 49.53
- Ian Finnerty- 49.69
- Nate Germonprez- 49.71
- Max McHugh- 49.90
- Van Mathias– 49.93
- Finn Brooks– 49.94
- Caeleb Dressel- 50.03
- Kevin Cordes- 50.04
- Denis Petrashov- 50.27
100 Breast Race Video
In addition to that swim, Mathias later raced the 50 free alongside Matt King (19.09). Mathias clocked another career best in 18.72, bettering his former best from the 2023 NCAA Championships in 18.89.
50 Free Race Video
Mathias is coming off racing a successful Pro Swim Series meet in Austin, where he became the fastest 50 breaststroker in the world this season, setting a new meet record of 26.57 and earning another win in the 100 breast, clocking a new best time of 59.45.
Mathias made the US National Team this past year on just 8 weeks of training, having qualified for the Pan Pacific Championships after swimming a 26.76 in the 50 breast at the US Nationals in Irvine.
Great story. Hope to see this guy in LA
if you squint, you can see Cody Miller taking PED’s in the background….
Stache game is on fire
great swim!
I love bro’s resurgence
I’m all in on this guy I get good vibes
His 50 fly, 50 breast, and 50 free are insane, he needs to do the 200 im.
Real Van Mathias-heads that know his career arc know that this is a laughable suggestion
You’re telling on yourself
100 SC IM maybe, he’s not about 200s anymore and it’s working for him.
Haha last time a sprinter had that epiphany we clowned him for dying the last 50. Don’t think Van has the endurance these days, nor the desire to be the new MA.
Nice to know that a massive extra fly kick before every break-out is legal now. The angle isn’t great, but you can literally see the wave it creates behind him after each break-out.
Fastest director of operations in the nation. Dude became a 3 event threat on the national team in less than 6 months
Unrelated this article is pretty funny being up now https://swimswam.com/swim-job-indiana-university-seeks-director-of-operations-for-mens-and-womens-swimming-and-diving/#comments