Zac Stubblety-Cook

Izaac Keith Stubblety-Cook, born on January 4, 1999, in Brisbane, Queensland, began his swimming career with the Water Ratz at Wellers Hill, primarily for water safety. He quickly advanced, becoming a top-ranked junior swimmer and achieving his first national age record in 2012. A significant challenge arose in 2015 when doctors discovered a tumor in his left shoulder, leading to a six-month recovery period. Despite this setback, Stubblety-Cook regained his form, making his Dolphins debut at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games in the 200m breaststroke heats. His progression continued with a silver medal at the Pan Pacific Championships in Tokyo in 2019, clocking 2:07.89 in the 200m breaststroke. In 2021, he secured national titles in both the 100m and 200m breaststroke events at the Australian Swimming National Championships.

Stubblety-Cook’s career reached an Olympic peak at the Tokyo 2020 Games, where he won a gold medal in the men’s 200m breaststroke with an Olympic record time of 2:06.38, becoming the first Australian since 1964 to win gold in this event. He also earned a bronze medal in the mixed 4x100m medley relay. In May 2022, he set a new world record in the 200m breaststroke at the Australian Championships in Adelaide, finishing in 2:05.95. This achievement was followed by a gold medal in the 200m breaststroke at the World Championships in Budapest, solidifying his position as a dominant force. He added another gold at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham 2022, winning the 200m breaststroke, and a silver in the 100m breaststroke. Additionally, he was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the 2022 Australia Day Honours.

In 2023, Stubblety-Cook continued to perform at the highest level, securing a silver medal in the 200m breaststroke at the World Championships in Fukuoka, where he was narrowly out-touched by a new world record. He also contributed to silver and bronze medals in the mixed 4x100m medley relay and men’s 4x100m medley relay, respectively. Heading into the Paris 2024 Olympics, he won both the 100m and 200m breaststroke titles at the Australian championships. At the Paris Games, he earned a silver medal in the 200m breaststroke with a time of 2:06.79. Off the pool deck, Stubblety-Cook is pursuing a double degree in psychological science and business at Griffith University and co-founded the coffee company Sapidus Roast.