Robert Christian Finke ( ; born November 6, 1999), better known as Bobby Finke, is an American competitive

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

. He won two gold medals for the United States in the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

: the men's 800-meter and 1500-meter freestyle swims. Finke successfully defended his title in 1500 m freestyle at the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

, setting the

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizatio ...

and added a silver medal in the 800 m freestyle. He swam for the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gainesv ...

from 2018 to 2022 under Coach Anthony Nesty. He currently swims as part of the pro group at UF. Before swimming in college, Bobby swam for Coach Fred Lewis on the

Saint Petersburg Aquatics Saint Petersburg Aquatics (SPA) is a year-round competitive swim team located at Northshore Aquatic Complex in Saint Petersburg, Florida. The club has been awarded the Bronze Medal status by USA Swimming, designating St. Petersburg Aquatics as on ...

club team (also known as SPA), located in

Saint Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the most populous city in the state that is not a county seat (the ...

Career

Early career

At 14 years old, Finke broke the Florida Age Group State Championships (FLAGS) 800m freestyle meet record with a time of 8:25.20. He proceeded to break the 1500m freestyle meet record, dropping over 15 seconds, for a time of 15:56.82. Finke also won the

USA Swimming USA Swimming is the national governing body for competitive swimming in the United States. It is charged with selecting the United States Olympic Swimming team and any other teams that officially represent the United States, as well as the overa ...

Open Water Junior Nationals by finishing first of all swimmers under 18 years of age. Finke finished seventh overall in a field that included both the pro open water swimmers as well as collegiate swimmers.

High school career

Finke graduated from Countryside High School in

Clearwater, Florida Clearwater is a city and the county seat of Pinellas County, Florida, United States, west of Tampa, Florida, Tampa and north of St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies T ...

, where he competed with his high school team. He also swam club for

, where he was coached by Fred Lewis, and swam alongside notable swimmers, such as

Melanie Margalis Melanie Ann Margalis-Fink (née Margalis; born December 30, 1991) is an American competitive swimmer who specializes in the freestyle, breaststroke and individual medley events. Margalis represented the Cali Condors which was part of the Intern ...

and

Nic Fink Nicolas Fink (born July 3, 1993) is an American competitive swimmer. He is a five-time world champion in breaststroke events and a 2024 Olympic Silver Medalist in the 100 meter breaststroke. He is a world record holder in the short course 4× ...

. Finke accomplished much during his high school years. Finke became a

Team USA The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

World Championship qualifier at FINA in 2017, and a member of the USA Swimming National team. At the 2018 Phillips 66 National Championships Finke finished second in the 1,500-meter freestyle in 14:55.34. Finke posted the third-fastest time ever in the 1,500-meter freestyle at the 2018 Pan Pacific Championships with a mark of 14:48.79. He also became a two-time NISCA All-American and a two-time USA Swimming Scholastic All-America. Finke also was a state champion in several swimming events in Florida's Division 4A. Entering college, Finke was ranked the No. 18-ranked recruit overall, and No. 1 swimmer in the state of Florida for the 2018 class.

College career

Robert Finke swam for the

in Gainesville, Florida from 2018 to 2022 where he was a top scorer for the team. Finke's college coach was Anthony Nesty. During his time at

, Finke earned a plethora of accolades. Some of these accolades are eleven-time All-American, 2020 All-SEC First Team, 2020 SEC Champion (1,650 Free), 2020 SEC Academic Honor Roll, 2019 SEC Champion (1,650 free and 400 IM), 2019 All-SEC First-Team, 2019 Co-SEC Freshmen Swimmer of the Year, 2019 SEC All-Freshman team, 2021 NCAA Champion in the 400yIM and the 1650y Freestyle and 2022 NCAA Champion in the 1650y Freestyle. Finke turned professional following the 2022 NCAA Championships and has continued training at the University of Florida under coach Anthony Nesty.

2020 Olympic Trials

The autumn before the 2020 Summer Olympics, in November 2020, Finke won the gold medal in the 1500 meter freestyle with a time of 15:09.14, the silver medal in the 800 meter freestyle with a 7:53.05, and the silver medal in the 400 meter individual medley with a 4:18.08 at the 2020 U.S. Open Swimming Championships. In June 2021, Finke became one of 53 swimmers named to represent the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

at the

2020 Tokyo Olympic Games The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

. He qualified in both the men's 800 meter freestyle and 1500 meter freestyle, placing first in both events at the 2020 US Olympic Trials in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

2020 Summer Olympics

In his first Olympic event, Finke won the gold in the men's 800m freestyle, setting a new American record with a time of 7:41.87. He also placed first in the men's 1500m freestyle with a time of 14:39:65, making him the first American man to win the event since 1984. In the finals of both events, Finke was behind with 50 meters to go, but made a last-minute surge to win. He swam the final 50 meters of the 1500 in just 25.78 seconds, more than a full second faster than any split by any other swimmer in the finals. It was also faster than any competitor's final lap in the men's 200m finals and more than half a second faster than the 26.39 seconds for his own final 50 meters in the 800m.

2024 Olympic Trials

In June 2024, at the U.S. Olympic trials, Finke competed in both the men's 800m freestyle and the men's 1500m freestyle. He finished first in both events, securing his spot to defend his gold medal in the

2024 Paris Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

2024 Summer Olympics

Finke competed in both the men's 800m freestyle and the men's 1500m freestyle. He took a silver in the 800m freestyle, finishing in 7:38.75, about a half-second behind gold medalist

Daniel Wiffen Daniel Wiffen (born 14 July 2001) is an Irish swimmer. He is an Olympic champion and bronze medalist, two-time world champion and three-time European short course champion. In December 2024, he was named BBC Northern Ireland Sports Perso ...

of Ireland. In the 1500m freestyle, he became the only U.S. male swimmer to win an individual gold medal, finishing in a world-record time of 14:30.67. Unlike his previous Olympic finals, Finke led the 1500m from start to finish, and swam the final lap in just 26.27 seconds to beat

Gregorio Paltrinieri Gregorio Paltrinieri (; born 5 September 1994) is an Italian competitive swimmer. He is a former world record holder in the short course 1500-meter freestyle. He holds the European record in the long course 800-meter and 1500-meter freestyle ...

by 3.88 seconds.

Records

Finke set the world record in the 1500m Freestyle with a time of 14:30.67 to win gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Finke first swum an American Record at the 2020 Olympic Games in the men's 800m Freestyle. In the heats of the event, he went a time of 7:42.72. In the final, his time of 7:41.87 broke his record. He reset the record at the 2022 World Aquatics Championships with a time of 7:39.36. A year later, at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships, he lowered the record to a 7:38.67. Also at the 2022 World Aquatics Championships, Finke broke the American record in the 1500m Freestyle with a time of 14:36.70. He again reset the record at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships by swimming a 14:31.59. Finke also holds the U.S. Open record (the fastest time on U.S. soil) in the 800m Freestyle. He first set it with a time of 7:43.32 from the 2022 Phillips 66 US International Team Trials. He then lowered it to 7:40.34 at the 2023 Phillips 66 US International Team Trials. Finke owns the U.S. Open record in the 1500m freestyle as well. He set it with a 14:42.81 at the 2023 Phillips 66 US International Team Trials. He later broke it at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials with a time of 14:40.28. In the short course pool, Finke set the American record in the 1650y Freestyle with a time of 14:12.08 at the 2020 SEC Championships.

International championships

Personal bests

Awards and honors

Golden Goggle Awards The Golden Goggle Awards, presented by the USA Swimming Foundation, is an awards ceremony which recognizes and honors the accomplishments of swimmers who represented the United States, that is USA Swimming National Team members, over the last year ...

Male Athlete of the Year: 2022, 2024 * Golden Goggle Awards Male Race of the Year: 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024

Personal life

Finke was born in

Tampa, Florida Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

on November 6, 1999. Finke's mother Jeanne swam for

Ball State Ball State University (Ball State or BSU) is a public university, public research university in Muncie, Indiana, United States. The university has three off-campus centers in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Indiana, Fort Wayne, and Fishers, Indiana. T ...

, while his father Joe is a swim coach with

. Finke also has two older sisters: Autumn Skye Finke, who swam for the

, and Ariel Summer Finke, who swam for

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

and

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and p ...

References

External links

* * * *
Bobby Finke – Men's Swimming & Diving at FloridaGators.com

Bobby Finke – Bio at SwimSwam.com

Robert Finke – detailed meet and event results, ranking, and LSC/Team records at MySwimIO.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Finke, Robert 1999 births Living people American male freestyle swimmers Sportspeople from Tampa, Florida Swimmers at the 2020 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2024 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in swimming Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming Florida Gators men's swimmers 21st-century American sportsmen Medalists at the 2024 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for the United States in swimming