Historic Feats With Eyes On Glasgow

Tyler Melbourne-Smith On His Record-Breaking Feats & Training Alongside Olympic Elite

Tyler Melbourne-Smith rewrote the Welsh and British short-course document books on the latest Swim England Winter National Championships at Ponds Forge, Sheffield.

The 20-year-old posted a time of three:36.09 within the 400m freestyle to go high of the 2025 world rankings the place he dislodged Australian Sam Short.

It would have earned Melbourne-Smith gold on the European Short Course Championships in Lublin, Poland, in early December.

Only Duncan Scott has gone faster amongst British males together with his nationwide document of three:34.46 as Melbourne-Smith elevated himself to 10^th-fastest European all-time.

He was again within the water for the 800 free the place he got here house in 7:33.56 to take 2.7secs off the British document of seven:36.26 that had stood to Kieran Bird since December 2023.

Melbourne-Smith is coached by Andi Manley on the University of Loughborough the place he’ll graduate with an International Business diploma in 2027.

While a profitable coaching block indicated he was on good type, he was nonetheless slightly shocked by his performances.

“I was just happy because I’ve been training at a pretty good level since joining Loughborough and I’ve taken a massive jump in training,” he informed Swimming World. “I think it was a good reflection to see where I’m at. The past few years I’ve been training at a lot higher level than what I’ve been racing at so it’s nice that I can take a step up.”

A couple of days after his exploits in Sheffield, Melbourne-Smith swept the 200, 400 and 800 free titles on the Swim Wales Winter Nationals in Swansea, regardless of contending with a chilly.

His successful time of 1:47.46 within the 200 free noticed him qualify to signify Team Wales at subsequent 12 months’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Sharing The Pool With Olympic Champion Wiffen

Until earlier this 12 months, Melbourne-Smith shared the Loughborough pool with Olympic 800 free champion Daniel Wiffen and world brief course medallist Lucas Henveaux till the pair left for Cal-Berkeley in California. Felix Auboeck, the 2021 400 free short-course world champion, was additionally a part of the group and retired in April this 12 months.

“I was good friends with Dan at the pool,” stated Melbourne-Smith. “He’s all the time been mentor.

“As quickly as I joined Loughborough you get to see there’s an enormous hole between junior age group swimming to the elite high of the highest. When I joined I used to be like wow, I simply wish to race every part even when I knew I couldn’t sustain a variety of the time.

“When you’ve got a group of good swimmers who all hold each other accountable in training it means if someone is lagging that day, they’ll tell you or you’ll tell them. I feel like when you train with quicker swimmers, you’re going to get quicker if you’re pushing each other so I think that was good.”

Born in Warrington, Melbourne-Smith moved to Dubai when he was three weeks outdated. He took to the water instantly and joined Hamilton Aquatics earlier than the household returned to Cheshire when he was about seven and a half.

He spent round 18 months at Ellesmere Titans earlier than going to Warriors of Warrington after which City of Liverpool the place he was coached by Mike Roberts.

Roberts had a superb profession in Liverpool, guiding the likes of Fran Halsall, James Guy and Michael Rock and he made a big effect on the younger Melbourne-Smith.

“The best coach I had as a junior would be Mike Roberts,” he stated. “I’d say one of the best coaches I’ve had. He was coming towards the end of his coaching career and when I left he retired. His knowledge of swimming was top, it was at an elite level. A good coach to be honest.”

Melbourne-Smith helps Manchester United however swimming has solely ever been the game for him.

“I’ve always loved training and racing,” he stated. “The best thing about swimming is competition, that’s the thing I love the most, racing and competing. That’s why you wake up every day, early mornings. You commit a lot of time with swimming to race at the best of your ability.”

Looking Ahead To His Commonwealth Debut

Looking forward to 2026 the place he heads to the British Championships in April because the reigning 800 free champion.

Melbourne-Smith – whose grandmother Claire hailed from Cardiff – will then set sail for Tollcross the place he’ll make his Commonwealth debut, three years after the 800/1500 double on the Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad and Tobago.

There he’ll reunite with Wiffen in addition to dealing with the likes of Australian trio Short, Elijah Winnington and Ed Somerville, McMillan of Northern Ireland, Englishmen Guy and Tom Dean in addition to Scott who’ll be backed by a vociferous Glasgow crowd.

He’s additionally set to be a part of the Wales 4×200 free relay alongside two-time Olympic champion Matt Richards.

Not that he’s placing any stress on himself, saying: “I think I’ve just got to go there and do my best and try and see what I can do, (against) some of the best swimmers in the world. I wouldn’t say there is a massive expectation on me: I can go there and try and surprise a few people and see what I can do.”