Michael Andrew

Michael Charles Andrew was born on April 18, 1999, in Edina, Minnesota. Hailing from South African parents who moved to the United States in 1997, Andrew started swimming at age seven in Aberdeen, South Dakota. His father, Peter Andrew, a former South African Navy diver, took on the role of his coach, converting a nightclub into a four-lane pool for training before moving the family to Lawrence, Kansas, in 2011 where they built a dedicated training pool at home. In 2013, at age 14, Andrew became the youngest American swimmer to turn professional, breaking over 100 National Age Group records in his junior career.

Andrew’s career is marked by his use of Ultra Short Race Pace Training (USRPT), a non-traditional method that emphasizes shorter, high-intensity sessions. This approach contributed to his rapid ascent in the swimming world. He made his international debut in 2015 at the FINA World Junior Swimming Championships in Singapore, where he won a gold medal in the 50-meter backstroke and was named male swimmer of the meet. The following year, in 2016, he secured his first senior world title in the 100-meter individual medley at the World Short Course Championships in Windsor, Canada. In 2017, at the World Junior Championships, he achieved a remarkable feat by setting three world junior records in less than an hour across the 50-meter backstroke, butterfly, and freestyle events.

Andrew qualified for his first Olympic Games in 2020 (held in 2021), making history as the first American swimmer to compete in an individual breaststroke event and another individual non-medley event. He earned a gold medal and set a world record as part of the 4×100-meter medley relay team. Throughout his career, Andrew has continued to collect medals at various World Championships and Swimming World Cup circuits, demonstrating consistent performance in diverse events. After the 2024 Olympic Trials, Andrew made a significant training change, moving to Arizona State University, and is now focusing on the 2025 World Aquatics Championships, emphasizing how his unique training and personal growth outside the pool contribute to his renewed purpose. He also leverages his YouTube channel, with over 60,000 subscribers, to share his journey and passions beyond swimming, embracing his role as an ‘influencer’ and continually challenging himself creatively.