Matt Welsh

Matthew James Welsh, OAM (born 18 November 1976) is an Australian swimmer who is the former world champion in the backstroke and butterfly. He took two golds in 50-metre butterfly and 50-metre backstroke, during one hour, at the World Championships in Shanghai 2006. Welsh retired from professional swimming in March 2008 when he failed to secure a place in the team for the Beijing Olympics.[1]

For other people named Matt Welsh, see Matt Welsh (disambiguation).

Matt Welsh
Welsh at 2008 Mt Waverley Village Christmas carols with his mother-in-law Patti Newton
Personal information
Full nameMatthew James Welsh
National team Australia
Born (1976-11-18) 18 November 1976
Melbourne, Victoria
Height1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight80 kg (176 lb)
Spouse(s)
Lauren Newton
​
(m. 2006)​
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesBackstroke, butterfly
ClubMelbourne Vicentre
Australian Institute of Sport
Medal record
Men's swimming
Representing Australia
Olympic Games
2000 Sydney 100 m backstroke
2000 Sydney 4×100 m medley
2000 Sydney 200 m backstroke
World Championships (LC)
1998 Perth 4×100 m medley
2001 Fukuoka 100 m backstroke
2001 Fukuoka 4×100 m medley
2003 Barcelona 50 m butterfly
2007 Melbourne 4×100 m medley
2003 Barcelona 50 m backstroke
2003 Barcelona 100 m backstroke
2005 Montreal 50 m backstroke
2001 Fukuoka 50 m backstroke
World Championships (SC)
1999 Hong Kong 4×100 m medley
2002 Moscow 50 m backstroke
2002 Moscow 100 m backstroke
2006 Shanghai 50 m backstroke
2006 Shanghai 100 m backstroke
2006 Shanghai 50 m butterfly
2006 Shanghai 4×100 m medley
1999 Hong Kong 100 m backstroke
2004 Indianapolis 50 m backstroke
2004 Indianapolis 100 m backstroke
2004 Indianapolis 200 m backstroke
2004 Indianapolis 4×100 m medley
1999 Hong Kong 50 m backstroke
2006 Shanghai 200 m backstroke
Pan Pacific Championships
1999 Sydney 100 m backstroke
2002 Yokohama 200 m backstroke
2002 Yokohama 4×100 m medley
2006 Victoria 4×100 m medley
Commonwealth Games
2002 Manchester 50 m backstroke
2002 Manchester 100 m backstroke
2002 Manchester 4×100 m medley
2006 Melbourne 4×100 m medley
2006 Melbourne 100 m backstroke
2006 Melbourne 50 m butterfly
Goodwill Games
2001 Brisbane 100 m backstroke
2001 Brisbane 4×100 m medley
2001 Brisbane 50 m backstroke
2001 Brisbane 200 m backstroke

Early years

Welsh started swimming in his final years at Scotch College, Melbourne and moved into competitive swimming in 1995 after leaving school at the age of eighteen. He trained under coach Ian Pope at the Melbourne Vicentre Club. His first big break came in 1998 at the world swimming championships in Perth, Western Australia with a gold in the 4x100-metre medley relay.

World and Olympic accomplishments
Event Time Place
1998 World Championships
100m Backstroke55.45 6th
4 × 100 m Medley3:37.98 GoldAR
2001 World Championships
50m Backstroke25.49 Bronze
100m Backstroke54.31 Gold
200m Backstroke1:58.80 4th
4 × 100 m Medley3:35.35 Gold
2003 World Championships
50m Butterfly23.43 GoldWR
50m Backstroke25.01 SilverAR
100m Backstroke53.92 SilverAR
200m Backstroke1:57.94 5th
2005 World Championships
50m Backstroke24.99 SilverAR
100m Backstroke54.89 9th
200m Backstroke2:02.64 18th
2007 World Championships
50m Backstroke25.61 8th
100m Backstroke54.65 7th
4 × 100 m Medley3:34.93 Gold
Event Time Place
2000 Olympics
100m Backstroke54.07 SilverAR
200m Backstroke1:57.59 BronzeAR
4 × 100 m Medley3:35.27 SilverAR
2004 Olympics
100m Backstroke54.52 5th
200m Backstroke2:01.73 19th
4 × 100 m Medley3:39.14 9th

At 31 and after 11 years on the Australian Swim Team, Welsh was unable to beat the younger generation at the trials and was not selected to compete at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Swimming history

Welsh has won several world championship titles in both backstroke and butterfly. He first broke the Australian record in the 100-metre backstroke in 1998. He also won more Australian swimming titles than any swimmer in history, claiming his 50th win at the 2006 Australian titles in Brisbane in December 2006.

Personal life

Welsh married Lauren Newton, the daughter of Bert and Patti Newton, and sister of Matthew Newton, on 4 November 2006. They are parents to six children born between January 2008 and August 2020.

Awards and honours

See also

References
  1. SMH.COM.AU, "Matt Welsh to quit the pool"
  2. "Matt Welsh". Australian Honours Database. Retrieved 30 December 2011.
  3. "Matt Welsh". Australian Honours Database. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.