Two-time Olympic 4×200 relay champion Matt Richards is heading to the Florida Gators in spring 2027 with less than 18 months remaining until the LA Games in July 2028.
The Gators made the announcement on social media, saying: “3x World Champion, 2x Olympic Gold Medalist, now the chance to be a Florida Gator! 🐊 Welcome to Florida, @m4ttrichards “
It comes a couple of months after Richards told Swimming World that he was doing everything in his power to avoid a repeat of his crushing disappointment of Paris 2024 where he missed 200m freestyle gold by 0.02secs behind David Popovici.
That includes heading to the Gators where he’ll join a pro group including Katie Ledecky and Bobby Finke with Tunisian pair Ahmed Jaouadi and Ahmed Hafnaoui on the swimming and diving program.
The 23-year-old has been training at Manchester Performance Centre where he’s been guided by Ryan Livingstone who has had a huge impact on Richards’ career and he’ll swap the north-west city for Gainesville next year.
Richards told floridagators.com: “Watching Caeleb Dressel race for Florida is what first made me want to be a Gator, and I’ve followed this team ever since. I’m close with a lot of the guys on the squad, so getting to race alongside them at SECs and NCAAs and help chase a national title is something I never thought I’d get the chance to do. I can’t wait to get out there and get started.”
He will join a group coached by Anthony Nesty who said: “We have been talking to Matt for a long time—but we finally worked it out. He is a great athlete and an even better person. He will improve all aspects of our team immediately. We will welcome him and his wife Emily to Gainesville this spring. Go Gators!”
On top of his two Olympic golds and one silver, Richards has four world titles among six medals, four European crowns and four Commonwealth medals, all from Glasgow 2026.