British swimmer Matt Richards, a two-time Olympic champion in the 4 × 200m freestyle relay, will join the Florida Gators in spring 2027 for one university semester. At 23, the world champion in the 200m freestyle is keen to experience American collegiate swimming before returning to the United Kingdom to prepare for the 2027 British Championships. The move will allow him to test himself in a new competitive environment while strengthening a Florida team with ambitions of success on the American collegiate stage.
A New American Experience to Prepare for the Next Stage of His Career
The University of Florida has officially announced that Matt Richards will arrive in Gainesville in spring 2027. The British swimmer, who turns 24 in December, will spend just one semester with the Gators. Alongside his sporting commitments, he will study sports management and compete in American collegiate swimming, including the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Championships and the NCAA Championships, the national collegiate championships.
The decision reflects Richards’ personal desire to experience a different side of the sport, having never competed in the American collegiate system despite his extensive international achievements. “I knew I didn’t have much time left to experience NCAA short-course racing, with my eligibility window ticking down,” he explained. Richards did not want to reach the end of his career regretting that he had never tested himself against the best swimmers in American college sport.
Caeleb Dressel, a former Florida Gators star and nine-time Olympic gold medallist, also played a key role in inspiring the move. “Watching Caeleb Dressel race for Florida is what first made me want to be a Gator,” Richards explained. The British swimmer now hopes to help the team compete for an NCAA national title after Florida finished runner-up at the 2026 championships.
Head coach Anthony Nesty, who won Olympic gold in the 100m butterfly in 1988, has welcomed Richards’ arrival. He believes the British swimmer will immediately strengthen the team across several areas. His presence should be particularly valuable in the freestyle relays, a key discipline in Florida’s pursuit of collegiate honours. Richards is one of the world’s leading swimmers over 100m and 200m freestyle, with personal bests of 47.45 seconds and 1:44.30 respectively in long-course competition. He set his 200m freestyle best at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, where he claimed the individual world title.
However, the American experience will be a short one. Richards plans to return to the United Kingdom in April 2027 to compete at the British selection trials ahead of major international competitions. He will then resume training in Manchester, where he works under coach Ryan Livingstone. His spell in Florida will therefore represent a temporary addition to his preparation rather than a permanent change of training base. His wife, Emily Richards, a butterfly specialist who finished seventh in the 200m butterfly at the 2025 World Championships, is also expected to accompany him to Gainesville to train with the Florida squad.
A Double Olympic Champion Still Aiming for the Top
Matt Richards’ move to the United States comes at a time when he has already established himself among Britain’s leading swimmers, but his ambitions remain firmly focused on further success. He announced himself on the Olympic stage at Tokyo 2020, held in 2021, helping the British men’s 4 × 200m freestyle relay team secure gold alongside Duncan Scott, James Guy and Tom Dean. The victory ended a 113-year wait for the United Kingdom to win Olympic gold in the event.
Three years later, in Paris, Richards and his team-mates successfully defended their title, achieving a historic result for British swimming. He also claimed his first individual Olympic medal, taking silver in the 200m freestyle in 1:44.74, just two hundredths of a second behind Romania’s David Popovici.
By joining the Gators, Richards will be looking to broaden his experience without losing sight of his international ambitions. The American collegiate format, with its short-course racing, will give him an opportunity to improve his turn technique while presenting a different challenge from major championships contested in a 50-metre pool. The experience should provide a valuable new dimension to his preparation as he continues to pursue success for his country on the international stage.
