Commonwealth champion Brodie Williams announces retirement from swimming

February 27, 2025

Two-time Commonwealth champion and Tokyo Olympian, Brodie Williams, has announced his retirement from a swimming career that’s ‘exceeded his childhood expectations’.

The Somerset native, who was initially a nervous swimmer when he first got in the water, went on to win three medals in three events on home turf at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games as well as becoming a European champion.

The 25-year-old achieved a lot in his short career at senior level after coming through the ranks at Millfield School and Street and District Swimming Club.

He represented Team GB at the Tokyo Olympic Games, finishing 21st in the 400m Individual Medley before narrowly missing out on a semi-final appearance in the 200m backstroke with 15th.

Williams also took gold as part of the 4x100m freestyle squad at the 2018 European Championships in Glasgow, as well as narrowly missing out on a world medal with fourth in the 200m Backstroke in 2022.

But it was that fine campaign in Birmingham which will have been one of the highlights of his career, where the then University of Bath athlete became one of the standout stars of the Games.

He started off his medal haul with his first at senior international level after a silver in the 100m backstroke, finishing just 0.13 behind South Africa’s Pieter Coetze.

Then came his golden moment, taking the 200m backstroke title in front of his family after holding off a late surge of Bradley Woodward to claim gold by just a hundredth of a second.

The Bath swimmer then concluded his programme with a second gold as he led off the England men’s medley relay winning team that also included James Wilby, James Guy and Tom Dean.

‘Thank you swimming’

Announcing the decision on Instagram he said: “It’s probably about time to announce my retirement from competitive swimming…

“This post is more a thank you to everyone who was part of my swimming story, the coaches, staff, and friends who made my journey so special.

“I am extremely proud of what I was able to accomplish and am happy knowing I left everything in the pool. My dream was always to be an Olympian, so I have definitely exceeded my childhood expectations!

“I will miss seeing everyone at meets, traveling the world, and doing the sport I love with all of my mates. I’ll even miss sharing a room with Joe Litchfield. Don’t be strangers!

“Lived it, loved it.

“Thank you swimming.”