Hunter Armstrong

Joseph Hunter Armstrong (born January 24, 2001) is an American competitive swimmer. He is the former world record holder in the long course 50 meter backstroke. At the 2022 World Aquatics Championships, he won a silver medal in the 50 meter backstroke, a bronze medal in the 100 meter backstroke, gold medals in the 4×100 meter freestyle relay and 4×100 meter mixed medley relay, and a silver medal in the 4×100 meter medley relay. At the 2020 Summer Olympics, he won a gold medal in the 4×100 meter medley relay, swimming backstroke in the preliminaries, and placed ninth in the 100 meter backstroke.

Background Armstrong was born in Dover, Ohio, to Ryan and Edie Armstrong. He has an elder brother named Jake. Armstrong graduated from Dover High School in 2019, where he competed as part of the Canton City Schools swim program.Metzger, Roger (July 31, 2021). "Dover's Hunter Armstrong wins a gold medal at Tokyo Olympics". The Times-Reporter. Retrieved August 2, 2021.

Career 2021 2020 US Olympic Trials Armstrong placed second in the 100 meter backstroke at the 2020 US Olympic Trials in swimming, qualifying for the 2020 Olympic Games in the event. In the prelims of the 100 meter freestyle, he swam a 49.31 and ranked 19th overall.USA Swimming (June 16, 2021). "U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Wave II: Men's 100m Freestyle Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved August 3, 2021.

2020 Summer Olympics

In advance of the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, Armstrong received the honor of being the US Olympic swim team member to reveal the captains of the swim team for the Olympic Games, he did so with a magic trick.Dornan, Ben (July 5, 2021). "Murphy, Dressel, Schmitt & Manuel Named 2020 USA Olympic Swimming Captains". SwimSwam. Retrieved July 30, 2021.

Armstrong finished ninth in the semifinals of the 100 meter backstroke on day three of competition.Metzger, Roger (July 30, 2021). "Hunter Armstrong still in line for an Olympic medal". The Repository. Retrieved July 30, 2021. Over 100 people gathered at Dover High School in Ohio as part of a watch party and watched his semifinal performance.Morse, Gaelen (July 26, 2021). "A tense Sunday in rural Ohio watching an Olympian do his thing". Reuters. Retrieved August 2, 2021. Members of the First Moravian Church in Dover also gathered to support him virtually.

On day seven, he swam the backstroke leg of the medley relay in the prelims of the 4x100 meter medley relay, advancing the relay to final alongside fellow relay teammates Andrew Wilson, Tom Shields, and Blake Pieroni.Anderson, Jared (July 30, 2021). "Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Day 7 Prelims Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved July 30, 2021.De George, Matthew (July 30, 2021). "Olympics: Italy Set Pace in Men's Medley Relay; U.S. Sneaks in as Seventh Seed". Swimming World. Retrieved July 30, 2021. On the final day of competition, the finals relay finished first and all of the relay members from the prelims and the final including Armstrong won a gold medal in the event.Emerson, Jack (August 1, 2021). "Swimming: Hunter Armstrong Helps Team USA In Heats, Earns Gold Medal In 4x100 Medley Relay". The Lantern. Retrieved August 2, 2021.Metzger, Roger (August 1, 2021). "Ohio State swimmer Hunter Armstrong wins an Olympic gold medal". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved August 2, 2021."Ohio natives claim gold in men's 4x100 meter medley relay". WHIO-TV. August 1, 2021. Retrieved August 2, 2021.

2021 World Short Course Championships For the 2021 World Short Course Championships in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in December, Armstrong entered to compete in the 100 meter backstroke."2021 FINA Short Course World Championships Roster". USA Swimming. October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 28, 2021. On December 14, it was announced that Armstrong had withdrawn from the 100 meter backstroke for the Championships.Dornan, Ben (December 14, 2021). "Hunter Armstrong Pulls Out Of 100 Back At Short Course Worlds: Psych Sheets". SwimSwam. Retrieved December 14, 2021.

2022 On the first day of competition at the Tim Welsh Classic in January 2022, Armstrong helped earn three first-place finishes for Ohio State University, one in the 100 yard backstroke with a 47.05, one in the 4×200 yard freestyle relay, and one in the 4×50 freestyle relay.De George, Matthew (January 21, 2022). "Hunter Armstrong's Three Wins Have Ohio State Leading at Tim Welsh Classic". Swimming World. Retrieved January 21, 2022.

2022 Big Ten Championships On the first day of the 2022 Big Ten Conference Championships in February 2022, Armstrong swam a 20.45 for the backstroke portion of the 4×50 yard medley relay to help achieve a first-place finish in a new Big Ten Conference record time of 1:22.13.Li, Yanyan (February 23, 2022). "Ohio State Men Break Nine-Year Standing Big Ten Record In 200 Medley Relay". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 23, 2022. The second day of competition, he ranked first in the prelims heats of the 50 yard freestyle with a time of 19.02 seconds and qualified for the final later in the day.Hamann, Michael (February 24, 2022). "2022 Men's Big Ten Championships: Day 2 Prelim Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 24, 2022. In the evening final, he won the conference title with a time of 18.93 seconds, finishing over two-tenths of a second ahead of the second-place finisher.Berman, Sarah (February 24, 2022). "2022 Men's B1G Championships: Day 2 Finals Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 24, 2022. Later in the same finals session, Armstrong swam a 44.36 for the backstroke portion of the 4×100 yard medley relay to contribute to a second-place finish in 3:01.44.De George, Matthew (February 24, 2022). "2022 Big Ten Men's Championships: Indiana Medley Relay Goes Record-Setting 3:00.95". Swimming World. Retrieved February 24, 2022. His time of 44.36 seconds set a new Big Ten Conference record and pool record in the 100 yard backstroke and made him the tenth-fastest performer in the event.Keith, Braden (February 24, 2022). "Hunter Armstrong Breaks Big Ten Record In 100 Back, #10 All-Time". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 24, 2022.Hy-Tek (February 25, 2022). "2022 B1G Men's Swimming & Diving Championship: Meet Results". sidearmstats.com. Retrieved February 25, 2022. Armstrong followed up his 44.36 with a 44.90 in the prelims heats of the 100 yard backstroke the following morning, ranking first heading into the final.Miller, Nicole (February 25, 2022). "2022 Men's Big Ten Championships: Day 3 Prelims Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 25, 2022. For the final he placed second, swimming a time of 44.78 seconds.De George, Matthew (February 25, 2022). "2022 Big Ten Men's Championships, Day 3 Finals: Alex Quach Breaks 45 in 100 Fly". Swimming World. Retrieved February 25, 2022.Edmund, Emma (February 25, 2022). "2022 Men's Big Ten Championships: Day 3 Finals Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 25, 2022. Later in the session, he led-off the 4×50 yard freestyle with an 18.93 to help achieve a first-place finish in a new Championships record and pool record time of 1:15.28. For the prelims heats of the 100 yard freestyle on the fourth and final day of competition, he swam a time of 41.54 seconds to advance to the final ranked first.Pelshaw, Anya (February 26, 2022). "2022 Men's Big Ten Championships: Day 4 Prelims Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 26, 2022. He won the Big Ten Conference title for the event in the final, where he was the only swimmer to finish the race in less than 42 seconds, swimming a time of 41.78 seconds.Keith, Braden (February 26, 2022). "2022 Men's Big Ten Championships: Day 4 Finals Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 26, 2022. In his last event of the Championships, he lowered his 100-yard freestyle time to a 41.60 for the lead-off leg of the 4×100 yard freestyle relay, helping set new pool and Championships records in a first-place time of 2:47.16.De George, Matthew (February 26, 2022). "2022 Big Ten Men's Championships: Brendan Burns Wins Twice as Indiana Seals Title". Swimming World. Retrieved February 26, 2022.

2022 NCAA Championships At the 2022 NCAA Championships in March in Atlanta, Armstrong started off competition on day one by helping place twelfth in the 4×50 yard medley relay with a split of 21.19 seconds for the backstroke leg of the relay that contributed to the final time of 1:22.98.D'Addona, Dan (March 23, 2022). "2022 NCAA Men's Championships: Florida on 200 Medley Relay NCAA Record 'It is Everything to Us'". Swimming World. Retrieved March 23, 2022. In his second event of the evening, he split a 1:32.18 for the second leg of the 4×200 yard freestyle relay to help place thirteenth in 6:14.54.Hy-Tek (March 26, 2022). "2022 NCAA DI Men's Swimming & Diving". swimmeetresults.tech. Retrieved March 26, 2022. The evening of day two, he helped achieve a seventh-place finish in the 4×50 yard freestyle relay, splitting a 19.01 for the lead-off leg of the relay.Rieder, David (March 24, 2022). "NCAA Men's Championships: Kieran Smith Anchors Florida to 200 Free Relay Title; Three Hundredths Off Record". Swimming World. Retrieved March 24, 2022. He ranked eighth and qualified for the final of the 100 yard backstroke in the prelims heats of the event the following morning, finishing in a time of 44.72 seconds.Hamann, Michael (March 25, 2022). "2022 NCAA Division I Men's Championships: Day 3 Prelim Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved March 25, 2022.Rieder, David (March 25, 2022). "NCAA Men's Championships: Brendan Burns Grabs Top Seed in Tight 100 Backstroke Heats". Swimming World. Retrieved March 25, 2022. In the final, he placed fifth, finishing 0.38 seconds after the first-place finisher with a time of 44.42 seconds.D'Addona, Dan (March 25, 2022). "2022 NCAA Men's Championships: NC State's Kacper Stokowski Stuns Field With Late Charge to Win 100 Back". Swimming World. Retrieved March 25, 2022. For the backstroke leg of the 4×100 yard medley relay later in the same session, he swam a 44.74, contributing to a tenth-place finish in 3:03.23. In his final individual event, the 100 yard freestyle on the fourth day, he ranked sixteenth in the prelims heats with a 41.92 and qualified for the b-final.Lohn, John (March 26, 2022). "NCAA Men's Championships: As Cal and Texas Battle, Bears' Bjorn Seeliger Snares Top Seed in 100 Freestyle". Swimming World. Retrieved March 26, 2022. He placed eighth in the b-final, sixteenth overall, with a 42.70.D'Addona, Dan (March 26, 2022). "2022 NCAA Men's Championships: Brooks Curry on Another Hometown Win: 'I've Been Dreaming About This Race'". Swimming World. Retrieved March 26, 2022. For his final relay event, 4×100 yard freestyle relay, he helped achieve a twelfth-place finish, swimming the lead-off leg of the relay in 41.99 seconds.

2022 International Team Trials