Chad Guy Bertrand le Clos, OIS (born 12 April 1992) is a South African competitive swimmer who is an Olympic, World and Commonwealth Games champion. He is the African record, Commonwealth record, and South African record holder in the short course and long course 200-metre butterfly and the short course 100-metre butterfly. He also holds African and South African records in the long course 200-metre freestyle and 100-metre butterfly, as well as the short course 100-metre freestyle. Formerly, he was a world record holder in the short course 100-metre butterfly and 200-metre butterfly.
At the 2012 Summer Olympics, he won a gold medal in the 200-metre butterfly and a silver medal in the 100-metre butterfly, as well as silver medals in the 200-metre freestyle and 100-metre butterfly at the 2016 Summer Olympics. He won five total medals at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics. Le Clos has won the Swimming World Cup overall male winner title four times: 2011, 2013, 2014, and 2017. Across the 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022 Commonwealth Games, he has won a total of 18 medals, including seven gold medals, four silver medals, and seven bronze medals. He has won a total of 19 medals, 12 gold medals, 5 silver medals, and 2 bronze medals, in individual events at Short Course World Championships.
At the 2014 Commonwealth Games, he tied the record set by Ian Thorpe for the most number of medals won at a single Commonwealth Games with seven medals. He became South Africa's most decorated Olympian when he won his fourth Olympic medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics. In 2017, he became the first male to win the overall title in the Swimming World Cup four times. Upon his completion of the 2018 Swimming World Cup, he won the Guinness World Record for "most gold medals won in the FINA Swimming World Cup by a male swimmer" for the 143 gold medals he won between 2009 and 2018, inclusive. In the same year, he became the most decorated Commonwealth Games swimmer, with 17 total medals, and the first man to win the Commonwealth Games title in the 200-metre butterfly three times in a row. At the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Le Clos won three relay medals: silver in the mixed 4×100 metre medley relay, bronze in the men's 4×100 metre freestyle relay and bronze in the men's 4×100 metre medley relay. The final medal raised his career total to 21, making him the most decorated athlete in Commonwealth Games history.
Background Le Clos's father Bert Le Clos is Mauritian, and moved to South Africa at the age of nine, where he met Le Clos's mother, Geraldine, who is of South African descent.However, Chad's third name, Bertrand, as well as his family name, come from the Celtic region of France called Brittany, where many indigenous people have a family name starting with either "Le" or "Ar". On top of that, Le Clos is a common family name amongst the natives of Brittany. It is uncertain who brought this family name to South Africa. He attended Westville Boys' High School in Durban, South Africa, the school named their main pool after him, matriculating in 2010. He started competing when he was ten years old, after first joining a local swim club based in Durban, named the Seagulls Swimming Club when he was eight years old."Chad le Clos: Profile". FINA. Retrieved 12 April 2022. He has a younger brother, Jordan, who is also a competitive swimmer.Nxumalo, Mphathi (11 April 2014). "Chad wins battle of Le Clos boys". Independent Online. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
2010–2011 2010 Commonwealth Games
At the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, India in October, Le Clos collected two gold medals, one silver medal, and two bronze medals. On the first day of the swimming competition, he won the gold medal and Commonwealth title in the 200-metre butterfly with a Games record time of 1:56.48."South African Le Clos salutes in 200m fly". ABC. 4 October 2010. Retrieved 12 April 2022. His medal was the first medal for South Africa at the 2010 Commonwealth Games as well as his first medal at a Commonwealth Games."South Africa's Le Clos wins 200m fly gold". Hindustan Times. 4 October 2010. Retrieved 12 April 2022. The same day, he contributed a split of 50.15 seconds for the third leg of the 4×100-metre freestyle relay in the preliminary heats and won a bronze medal when the finals relay placed third in 3:15.21."Chad le Clos: Medals". FINA. Retrieved 12 April 2022. Two days later, as part of the 4×200-metre freestyle relay, Le Clos won his third medal, a bronze medal, helping achieve a third-place finish in the final with a 7:14.18 after helping qualify the relay to the final in the preliminary heats. The fourth day, he placed 17th in the preliminary heats of the 100-metre butterfly with a time of 56.56 seconds."Athletes & Results: Swimming 100m Butterfly - Men Delhi 2010". Commonwealth Games Federation. Retrieved 12 April 2022. Later in the day, he won his second gold medal and Commonwealth title of the Games, this time in the 400-metre individual medley, where he set a new Games record with his time of 4:13.25.Fish, Julia (8 October 2010). "Another golden day in Delhi". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 12 April 2022."SA's Games medal tally climbs". News24. 7 October 2010. Retrieved 12 April 2022. On day five, he placed fifth in the final of the 200-metre individual medley with a time of 2:00.74."Athletes & Results: Swimming 200m Individual Medley - Men Delhi 2010". Commonwealth Games Federation. Retrieved 12 April 2022. For his final event, the 4×100-metre medley relay, he split a 52.98 for the butterfly leg of the relay in the final to help win the silver medal in a time of 3:36.12.
2010 Short Course World Championships At the World Short Course Championships in Dubai, Le Clos won the gold medal in the 200-metre butterfly. He narrowly beat South African Dekota Morris by 0.05 of a second and South African Donovan Marais, the 2008 Olympic silver medalist, by 0.11 of a second.
2011 Long Course World Championships At the 2011 World Aquatics Championships in Shanghai, he finished fifth in the 200-metre butterfly, 13th in the 100-metre butterfly and 10th in the 4 × 100 m medley relay with his teammates.
2012–2013 2012 Summer Olympics
On the first day of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Le Clos finished fifth in the 400m individual medley. On the 4th day, Le Clos won the gold medal in the 200m butterfly in 1min 52.96 sec, edging out the two-time defending Olympic champion and world record holder, Michael Phelps, by 0.05 seconds. In personal information given to the media, Le Clos had stated before the games that his sporting hero is Michael Phelps. He later said that beating his hero was unexpected. The next day Le Clos qualified for the final of the 200m individual medley by swimming the (tied) 7th time in the semi-finals, but he withdrew to focus on the 100m butterfly. On the 7th day of the competition, Le Clos won the silver medal in the 100m butterfly, tied with Yevgeny Korotyshkin in a time of 51.44 sec, at 0.23 sec behind Phelps.
During the 2012 Games, Le Clos's father, Bert le Clos, became an instant media personality after being interviewed on British television about his son's achievement in winning a gold medal.
2013 Long Course World Championships After his Olympic success, Le Clos came into the World Championships as a threat. However, Le Clos shortened his program this year, only deciding to participate in the butterfly events. In his first event, the 50-metre butterfly, Le Clos came 23rd with a time of 23.76, unable to advance to the semi-finals. In his signature event, the 200-metre butterfly, after easily breezing into the final, he followed his win at the Olympics, where he won with a 1:54.32. He finished off his schedule by winning the 100-metre fly with a new national record of 51.06, ending the championships on a good note.
2013 Swimming World Cup At the 2013 Swimming World Cup stop in Eindhoven, Netherlands in August 2013, Le Clos broke the short course 200 metre butterfly world record of 1:49.11, set by Kaio de Almeida of Brazil in 2009, in the final 200 metre butterfly with a time of 1:49.04, which also earned him a World Cup record and the gold medal in the event.FINA (7 August 2013). "FINA Swimming World Cup 2013 Eindhoven: Men's 200m Butterfly Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved 14 January 2022."Chad eyes title, world record". News24. 11 October 2013. Retrieved 14 January 2022."Chad Le Clos Breaks 1:49 Barrier in 200 Fly World Record". Swimming World. 5 November 2013. Retrieved 14 January 2022. Later in the World Cup circuit, Le Clos broke the 200 metre butterfly world record a second time, this time breaking his own world record and World Cup record with a time of 1:48.56 at the stop in Singapore, Singapore in November, making him the first swimmer to finish the event in less than 1:49.00.FINA (5 November 2013). "FINA Swimming World Cup 2013 Singapore: Men's 200m Butterfly Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
2014–2015 2014 Commonwealth Games
In July 2014, at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, held at Tollcross International Swimming Centre in Glasgow, Scotland, Le Clos won seven total medals, including two gold medals, one silver medal, and four bronze medals. His seven medals tied the record for the most number of medals won in a single Commonwealth Games set by Australian Ian Thorpe in 2002."Chad le Clos stars at Commonwealth Games with record 7 medals". News24. 30 July 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2022. With his 12 total medals from the 2010 and 2014 Commonwealth Games, Le Clos tied Roland Schoeman for being South Africa's most decorated Commonwealth Games swimmer."Le Clos Joins Exclusive Club". Mossel Bay Advertiser. 31 July 2014. Retrieved 13 April 2022.