Swimming World Magazine Announces Male and Female Pacific Rim Swimmers of the Year

Although the Australian women have held onto the Female Pacific Rim Swimmer of the Year award with an iron fist since Swimming World began awarding it 21 years ago, their men have actually had a rough time since Ian Thorpe and Grant Hackett ruled the roost Down Under.

This year, let’s just say the timing was right for Australia to end its 10-year drought of not winning the award:

• Japan’s Kosuke Hagino, the 2014 Male World and Pacific Rim Swimmer of the Year, had his season cut short after he broke his elbow in a biking accident prior to Worlds, thereby forcing him to withdraw from the meet.

• China’s Sun Yang, the 2013 Male World and Pacific Rim Swimmer of the Year, swam well at this year’s World Championships, winning two gold medals and a silver. However, it’s possible that Sun’s positive drug test in May 2014—which was not reported for six months—influenced this year’s SOY voting.

That left the door wide open for Aussie Mitch Larkin to snatch this year’s Male Pacific Rim award…and deservedly so.

At Kazan, Larkin, 22, swept the 100 and 200 meter backstroke events. He beat France’s Camille Lacourt in the 100, 52.40 to 52.48, and posted an Oceanic record in the 200 in 1:53.58 to win by a full second over Poland’s Radoslaw Kawecki (1:54.55). Larkin also helped Australia to a silver medal in the men’s 400 medley relay.

In November, Larkin added two Commonwealth records to his 2015 resumé: 100 and 200 back, 52.11 and 1:53.17, at the World Cup in Dubai.