Sara Curtis Leads Quintet of European Medalists into NCAA Campaign
The NCAA stage has always sported tremendous international talent, its schools boosted by contributions from stars such as South Africans Roland Schoeman and Ryk Neethling to recent European standouts like Leon Marchand and Hubert Kos. In women’s action, Olympic champions Agnes Kovacs and Penny Heyns flourished as part of the American collegiate scene, as did Katinka Hosszu. Countless more have made their mark.
This coming season, a quartet of athletes will bring medals from the European Championships to NCAA pools. Here’s a look at the swimmers who earned podium appearances at Euros and will be riding a wave of momentum when they return to the college scene.
Sara Curtis
After helping the University of Virginia to a sixth consecutive NCAA team title as a freshman, Sara Curtis was one of the stars of the European Championships. Her week in Paris was highlighted by a pair of world records in the 50-meter backstroke, her gold medal in the event won in 26.56. Curtis also claimed bronze medals in the 50 freestyle (23.99) and 100 freestyle (52.72), and she led off the silver-medal 400 medley relay with a backstroke leg of 58.43. Another bronze was added in the mixed 400 freestyle relay.
Mary-Ambre Moluh
A French star who competes collegiately for Cal-Berkeley, Mary-Ambre Moluh wowed the home crowd with multiple sensational performances in the backstroke events. Moluh opened the week with a European record in the 100 backstroke (57.99) as part of the mixed medley relay that won gold. She later won gold in the 100 back, taking the European record down to 57.93. There was also a silver medal in the 50 backstroke, courtesy of a French record of 27.06.
Nikita Sheremet
One year after securing gold at the World Junior Championships in the 50-meter freestyle, Nikita Sheremet sped to a European championship in the event. Heading into his sophomore year at Louisville, the Ukrainian star clocked 21.11 for a decisive triumph, his time elevating him into a share of sixth in the all-time rankings. Two years away from the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Sheremet has announced himself as a medal contender.
Luka Mladenovic
Following one year at the University of Michigan, Luka Mladenovic announced he was transferring to the University of Texas, which has won the past two NCAA team championships. When Mladenovic represents the Longhorns in college action for the first time, he’ll be accompanied by a bronze medal in the 200 breaststroke from Euros. The Austrian clocked a mark of 2:08.91, finishing behind only Great Britain’s Filip Nowacki (2:07.70) and the Netherlands’ Caspar Corbeau (2:07.78).
Miroslav Knedla
A multi-event contributor as Indiana finished third in the team standings at last spring’s NCAA Championships, Czechia’s Miroslav Knedla pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the European Championships. In the final of the 50 backstroke, Knedla snared the gold medal, that victory fueled by defeats of the Russian duo of Kliment Kolesnikov and Pavel Samusenko. En route to the title, Knedla was timed in 24.11 to move into the all-time top-10.