U.S. Nationals: Luke Hobson Blasts 1:43.73 200 Free, Becoming Fifth-Fastest Man Ever
The world record in the men’s 200 freestyle has been untouched since the era of full-body polyurethane suits, the 1:42.00 belonging to Germany’s Paul Biedermann considered among the most untouchable marks on the books. Few swimmers have come close since the return to textile-only swimsuits in 2010: Yannick Agnel clocked 1:43.14 in 2012, and then it was a decade until David Popovici finally surpassed that with a 1:42.97.
Now, add Luke Hobson to that exclusive club.
In a dominant performance in the U.S. Nationals final, Hobson became the fifth-fastest performer in history, joining Biedermann, Michael Phelps, Popovici and Agnel. The 22-year-old swam the 10th-quickest performance in history and the fastest overall in three years.
In the opening meters of the race, Chris Guiliano jumped on the pace from lane eight, but Hobson quickly asserted himself and moved under world-record pace at the first two splits, with a halfway time of 50.05. Biedermann’s suit-aided back-half pace quickly extinguished any possibility of a world record, and Hobson did fade slightly down the stretch, but he never lost his signature monstrous kick. The result was historic.
Hobson touched in 1:43.73, busting through the U.S. Open record of 1:44.10 that Phelps set at the 2008 Olympic Trials. He beat his previous best time, the 1:44.78 he posted in prelims, by more than a second. The time is by far the fastest in the world this year, surpassing the 1:44.25 posted by Germany’s Lukas Martens last month.
Hobson continues his ascent through the world rankings in the 200 free. After finishing fifth in his global debut in 2023, Hobson won bronze in an extremely tight Olympic final. In the year since, Hobson has broken a 15-year-old world record in the short course meters 200 free, earning a world title in the process, and at the NCAA Championships, he crushed his own American and NCAA records in the 200-yard free.
“That’s obviously not the fastest time long course meters, and that’s the overall goal in my lifetime,” Hobson said. “All the racing experience and knowing where I’m at in a 200, they’re all a little different, but it’s very similar in a lot of aspects. I think the more I do it, the more I get good reps racing really good competition like we had here and the more I’m prepared for meets like Worlds and the Olympics.”
As for the race for second place, Gabriel Jett will swim at a major international competition for the first time after he placed second in 1:44.70, becoming the third-fastest performer in the world for 2025 behind Hobson and Martens. That time made him the fourth-fastest American ever behind Phelps, Hobson and Ryan Lochte.
Third went Rex Maurer in 1:45.13, while Henry McFadden was fourth in 1:45.22. Those swimmers now rank eighth and ninth in the world, respectively. Like Jett, Maurer is set to make his debut on a senior-level U.S. team next month while McFadden returns to the World Championships after he was previously a prelims relay swimmer in 2023.
Hobson knocked more than a second off his lifetime best, but the drops for the other three automatic relay qualifiers were even larger:
- Jett: 1:47.16 best time, 1:45.46 prelims, 1:44.70 final
- Maurer: 1:46.79 best time, 1:45.46 prelims, 1:45.13 final
- McFadden: 1:46.80 best time, 1:46.13 prelims, 1:45.22 final
Combined, those best times will give the United States favorite status over two-time Olympic champion Great Britain in the 800 free relay heading into World Championships. A composite of the four swimmers’ times from this final adds up to 6:58.78, much quicker than the 6:59.43 Britain swam on the way to gold in Paris and more than three seconds ahead of the combined mark posted by the four-best British swimmers in 2025. If the American foursome can match these times at Worlds, they will be in range of the world record of 6:58.55, another relic from 2009.
Carson Foster, a member of the U.S. men’s 800 free relay every year since 2022, finished fifth in 1:45.45. Foster is already on the Worlds team by virtue of his runnerup finish in the 200 fly, and he will add relay alternate duties in Singapore, joining Hobson and Maurer as Texas-trained swimmers to make the squad. Chris Guiliano just missed, finishing seventh in 1:45.73.
Kieran Smith, who has been on the relay squad consistently since the Tokyo Olympics, will have to wait to learn of his World Championships fate after he placed sixth in 1:45.72.
In the aftermath of his breakthrough swim, Hobson was thinking about even further progress. Unlike most around the sport, he does not consider the world record untouchable. Recording a time that only Popovici has achieved in the last decade? Great, but not enough, not with the 1:42.00 still out there, and he is fearless in sharing his long-term ambitions.
The 22-year-old relies on utmost confidence in his training and in his race strategy. “I was out in 50.0, which was by far the fastest I’ve ever been out,” Hobson said. “I’m happy with it because I’m not dying too bad on the back half. A little tired on the last 50, but overall, great swim. I think that’s the way to go. If I’m trying to go 42-low, that’s what it takes.”
In addition to the world record, Hobson is open about a desire to cap off his career with gold in the 200 free at the Los Angeles Olympics. His progress in the event across all courses combined with his record of clutch swims in big moments inspires confidence in his ability to pull it off.
“To win gold on home soil, I saw Leon do it a couple times last summer. It kind of inspired me, and I think it’d be one of the best moment of my life,” Hobson said. “It’s definitely something that I’m working toward and something that motivates me every day.”
For the present, he heads to Singapore on a short list of favorites, alongside Martens and Olympic champion Popovici, to secure a world title.
“That’s the spot I want to be in at the end of the summer,” Hobson said. “Really good spot to be in, and kind of just looking forward to the summer and seeing what I can do in Singapore.”
