By Mark Wild on SwimSwam
2026 Commonwealth Games
July 24 – 29, 2026 (pool swimming) Glasgow, Scotland Tollcross International Swimming Centre LCM (50m) Meet Central Preview Index EntriesFour years ago at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Duncan Scott and Lewis Clareburt climbed to the top of the podium in the 200 and 400 IM respectively. The pair each reset a Games record in their event, with Scott’s 1:56.88 taking the 200, and Clareburt’s 4:08.70 also setting a new Oceanian and Commonwealth record. The pair, both strong IMers, also medaled in the other IM, with Scott taking bronze in the 400 IM and Clareburt finishing 3rd in the 200 IM.
Silver medalists Tom Dean of England and Brendon Smith of Australia also return to the field, so, on all appearances, it appears as if the entire podium returns, but the entries released today show that Duncan Scott will not be defending his 400 IM bronze. Instead, the Scot will attempt to win in front of a home crowd in the 200s of Fly, Free, and IM, the latter two of which he is the defending champion in.
MEN’S 200 I.M. – By the Numbers
World Record: 1:52.69 – Leon Marchand (FRA), 2025 Commonwealth Record: 1:55.28 – Duncan Scott (GBR), 2021 Games Record: 1:56.88 – Duncan Scott (SCO), 2022 2022 Champion: Duncan Scott (SCO) – 1:56.88In front of a home partisan crowd, Scott will be looking to be the first swimmer since Australia’s Matthew Dunn in 1994 and 1998 to win the 200 IM back to back. He is the favorite, as he is the only entrant with a seed time under 1:57.00, entered with his 1:55.51 season-best from last year. A two-time Olympic medalist in the event, having collected the silver medal at both the Tokyo and Paris Games, Scott is the most decorated swimmer in the field.
Scott placed 4th last year in the event in Singapore, swimming a 1:56.32 in the finals, but he has already eclipsed that mark this year as he won the event at April’s Aquatics GB Championships in a time of 1:56.08. The 9th fastest performer in the event ever, Scott’s result ranks him as the 4th fastest performer this season, trailing Hungary’s Hubert Kos (1:55.50) and the Japanese pair of Tomoyuki Matsushita (1:55.60) and Kosuke Makino (1:55.85), none of whom will be present in Scotland’s largest city for the Commonwealth Games. Three other swimmers attending the meet are currently ranked in the world’s top 25, and on paper they appear to pose the biggest threat to Scott’s chances of repeating as champion.
William Petric (Photo Credit: Delly Carr/Swimming Australia)
Leading the charge is Australia’s William Petric. The 21-year-old Melbourne native Petric won the event at last month’s Australian Trials, recording a mark of 1:57.55, a little off his season best of 1:57.18 from December’s Queensland Championships, where the 2024 Olympic semifinalist recorded his lifetime best of 1:57.18. Like Scott, Petric is a strong butterflier, but may lack the strength across all four strokes to compete with Scott or with his fellow Antipodean, Lewis Clareburt.
The Kiwi, Clareburt, as mentioned above, is the defending Commonwealth bronze medalist, having earned his spot on the podium with a 1:57.59 performance. The Oceanian and Commonwealth record holder in the 400 IM, Clareburt may find the 200 a little too short an event to challenge Scott. Still, he did finish one spot behind the Scot at Worlds in Singapore, recording his personal best and national record of 1:57.06. The 2024 World Champion in the 400 IM, Clareburt sits tied for 13th in the world this season in the shorter IM event, having won the 200 at his nation’s swimming championships in a time of 1:57.65.
The last swimmer ranked in the world’s top 25 this season may be unfamiliar to many outside of Great Britain, as Evan Jones of Scotland currently occupies the 22nd spot in the ranking thanks to his runner-up performance at the Aquatics GB championships in April, where he recorded a new personal best of 1:58.09. Born to English parents but in Scotland, Jones represented Scotland at the Commonwealth Games back in 2022, winning two relay bronze medals and placing 10th in this event individually. A strong freestyler, Jones earned his first senior gold medal swimming a prelim leg of Great Britain’s 4×200 free relay at Worlds last summer, so if he is close, he could find himself in the medal hunt.
Jones is ranked 10th all time among the constituent nations of Great Britain, and while he has been 2nd fastest this season among them, he does trail both of England’s entrants, as Tom Dean and Max Litchfield hold personal bests of 1:56.07 and 1:56.64, respectively.
World Aquatics ChampionshipsFukuoka (JPN)14-30 JULY 2023
Both of their times are at least three years old, but each could easily find themselves in the medal hunt. Dean, the 2nd-fastest Brit of all time, is the defending silver medalist and a 2023 World bronze medalist in the event, finishing just .12 behind Scott and his silver medal. Dean did not swim the event at Great Britain’s Championships, nor any event for that matter, withdrawing from the meet citing a shoulder injury. He had seemingly moved away from the event after missing the semifinals at Worlds last year, but took on the event at the AP Race London and at Scotland’s National Open last month, where he was 1:59.73. Entered with his 1:58.80 from the 2025 AP Race London, Dean sits just .10 back of his fellow Englishman Max Litchfield.
Litchfield hasn’t recently had the opportunity to contest the event on the global stage as much as Scott and Dean have occupied those spots, but Litchfield has made a name for himself in the 400 IM, taking the silver medal at the 2024 Worlds. At April’s selection meet, Litchfield posted his fastest time in the event since 2024, when he won the bronze medal behind Scott and Jones in a time of 1:58.70. Like Clareburt, the event may be too short for the Loughborough NC swimmer to earn a spot on the podium.
Scotland is the lone nation with three entrants and may have the home crowd cheering for 3/8 of the field, as they have a slim chance of filling the entire podium. Keeping that chance alive is the 21-year-old Matthew Ward. A Bath Performance Centre-based swimmer, Ward is a very strong backstroker, having set the Scottish record in the 100 at the Aquatics GB Championships. At that meet he also finished 5th in the 200 IM in a mark of 1:59.15, just a tad off his personal best of 1:59.04 from last summer’s Aquatics GB Next Gen Championships.
Likely rounding out the field is Australia’s other entrant, Brendon Smith. Smith placed 3rd at his nation’s trials behind Petric and Thomas Neill, but Neill’s name is a no-show in the entries list. Smith, similar to Clareburt and Litchfield, is much more suited to the longer IM event, having won the silver medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games as well as placing 3rd at the Tokyo Olympics the year prior. Like so many of those already mentioned, Smith is a strong freestyler as well, having won multiple medals as part of Australia’s 4×200 freestyle relay. He does own a personal best of 1:58.12 from 2024 and was less than a second off that mark last month at Trials, going 1:59.11, his best performance in nearly two years, so Smith, if close at the 150-meter mark, could be in striking range.
The eight aforementioned swimmers are the lone entrants with seeds under 2:00. Still, Canada’s lone entrant Lorne Wigginton does own a sub-2:00 personal best, having just gone a 1:59.01 at the Canadian Swimming Trials held a fortnight ago. The University of Michigan-based swimmer is entered with a 2:00.59, but his new PB certainly could have the 2023 Junior World bronze medalist in the hunt for a spot in the final. Not to sound too repetitive, though, Wigginton’s talents lie more in the 400 IM, so the 200 IM may be a little too short a race for him to contest for a medal.
The Men’s 200 IM is scheduled for the first day of competition, but it is a busy day for some swimmers, as it conflicts with the 50 back, 100 breaststroke, and the 4×100 free relay. Scott and Dean will likely have the relay to swim, but Ward is slated to swim the 50 backstroke, where he is the 8th seed, an event set to kick off just 30 minutes after his 200 IM, so he will have to play the dangerous game of spending enough energy to make the final but saving enough for his next race. All three Scots are slated to swim in the last heat, so Scott, Jones and Ward will know at least what they need to swim to make the final. Dean is an interesting case as well; he didn’t swim at trials, but did drop a sub-2:00 minute time at the Scottish nationals, so could surprise but could also be a little rusty from an interrupted training cycle.
SwimSwam’s Picks
Place Name Nation Season Best Lifetime Best 1 Duncan Scott SCO 1:56.08 1:55.28 2 Lewis Clareburt NZL 1:57.65 1:57.06 3 William Petric AUS 1:57.55 1:57.55 4 Evan Jones SCO 1:58.09 1:58.09 5 Max Litchfield ENG 1:58.70 1:56.64 6 Tom Dean ENG 1:59.73 1:56.07 7 Lorne Wigginton CAN 1:59.01 1:59.01 8 Brendon Smith AUS 1:59.11 1:58.12MEN’S 400 I.M. – By the Numbers
World Record: 4:02.50 – Leon Marchand (FRA), 2023 Commonwealth Record: 4:08.70 – Lewis Clareburt (NZL), 2022 Games Record: 4:08.70 – Lewis Clareburt (NZL), 2022 2022 Champion: Lewis Clareburt (NZL) – 4:08.70Lewis Clareburt by Nardia Mulkerrins
The men’s 400 I.M. loses Duncan Scott and Tom Dean from the field, but Dean wouldn’t make much of an impact in the event. Scott certainly would, as the Scot is the defending Olympic silver medalist in the event but did not compete in the event at Worlds in Singapore last summer. He did go 4:15.94 at the Edinburgh International meet in March, but the point is moot as he is not looking to defend his Commonwealth bronze medal in front of his home nation. It wouldn’t be a Bob’s your uncle situation for Scott, as both Clareburt and Litchfield are World medalists, and the pair hold faster personal bests than the Scot.
Clareburt set his personal best and Commonwealth record four years ago at this very meet, going 4:08.70 to win the gold ahead of the 4:10.15 of Brendon Smith and the 4:11.27 of Scott. Of that field from Birmingham, only the top two and 5th-place finisher Se-Bom Lee return. The New Zealander, Clareburt, is the 15th fastest performer in the event ever and currently sits 6th in the world this year. His 4:09.47 from May’s New Zealand championships is the lone sub-4:10 time in the field, and is less than a second off his best, so the Kiwi could be on the way to a new Commonwealth record; that said, Clareburt did miss the final of this event last year in Singapore, bested by both Litchfield and Smith.
Litchfield, who finished runner-up to Clareburt at the 2024 Doha Worlds, has gotten the better of the Kiwi recently, beating him later that year at the Paris Olympics, where he finished 4th in a national record of 4:08.85. Of note, it was the Englishman’s 3rd straight time missing the podium at the Olympics, having finished 4th both in Rio and Tokyo. He also got the better of Clareburt last year, finishing 7th in the final at Worlds, hitting the wall in finals with a time of 4:12.77. Litchfield has taken on the event often this year, producing a best of 4:11.69 at the Aquatics GB Swimming Championships, winning comfortably by over four seconds.
credit: Mickaël MalaperMalaper Photography
He currently sits 12th in the world, three spots ahead of Brendon Smith of Australia. Smith finished 8th in the final of the event last summer, going 4:13.28. The Aussie, the defending silver medalist and a Tokyo bronze medalist, owns a PB of 4:09.27 and is the current Australian record holder. The 22nd fastest ever in the event, Smith’s PB does date back to those Tokyo Games and has seemingly been able to recapture that form. He was 4:10.15 in 2022 and 4:10.37 at the Fukuoka Worlds, but struggled in 2024, failing to make the Olympic final, going 4:14.36 in prelims, and failing to crack the 4:13 barrier in Singapore. This season, however, things may be turning a corner. He was 4:16.07 in December and was 4:12.70 at Australian Trials, his fastest swim in two years, and now ranks 15th in the world.
While Litchfield and Smith are veterans of the event and have the personal bests to warrant medal consideration, they may find themselves shut out of a podium position due to the rise of two young stars—Smith’s compatriot William Petric and Canada’s Lorne Wigginton.
Both are strong contenders in the 200 IM, but the 400 IM may be their best chances to medal. Petric won the Australian Trials with a 4:11.04, over a second clear of Smith, but had already been faster this season, producing a personal best of 4:10.20 at the Australian Open back in April. Ranked just one spot behind Clareburt as the 7th fastest time in the world this season, the 21-year-old will be looking to make his first international final after having finished 12th at the Olympics in Paris and a disappointing 16th last summer in Singapore, having gone 4:16.91 in prelims.
Wigginton, who was named to the Commonwealth Games back in October last year for his home nation of Canada, has made significant progress over the intervening months and has become a real medal contender. He finished 14th in the event last summer, but used a strong college season, setting a new PB at Big 10s and finishing 4th at NCAAs to set himself up for a strong Canadian Trials, where he posted a new national record of 4:11.32. His time cut .09 off the old mark, set in the super-suited era by Brian Johns. It was also his first PB in the event since he won the bronze medal at the 2023 Junior Worlds. Like Petric, Wigginton’s best slots him ahead of Litchfield and Smith in the World Rankings, with the Michigan swimmer sitting 11th in the world.
Only one other swimmer occupies a spot in those rankings, and it is Petric’s and Smith’s fellow Australian Se-Bom Lee, who posted a season’s (and personal) best 4:13.00 at Australian Trials to finish 3rd. Lee, a strong 200 backstroker and 200 butterfly as well, has an interesting history with the event. He qualified for the Olympics in the event back in 2021 and competed at the 2022 Worlds, missing the final on both occasions. He placed just 6th at his nation’s trials in 2023, and didn’t contest the event in 2024, instead booking his ticket to Paris in the 200 backstroke. He struggled again last summer, going 4:18.37 and placing 3rd, but has turned it around this season, going 4:17.40 at April’s Australian Open before setting a new PB at Trials last month.
One other swimmer joins the sextet with an entry time under the 4:15 minute mark, and that is Scotland’s lone representative Charlie Hutchinson. The 2023 British Swimming Champion in the event, Hutchinson has finished runner-up the past three years, taking the silver in April behind Litchfield in a time of 4:15.79. A strong freestyler in addition to his IM prowess, Hutchinson will be making his senior-level meet debut. The Florida Gator-based swimmer has made a name for himself at the junior and U23 level, having won the 400 IM silver in a personal best of 4:14.12 at the 2025 U23 championships, where he also won a bronze medal in the 200 free.
With just 12 entries, the top seven should be able to save some energy and likely won’t need to be firing on all cylinders in order to earn a spot in the finals, but the last spot is shaping up to be a dogfight between Malaysia’s Tan Khai Xin and Namibia’s Oliver Durand. Tan, the national record holder for Malaysia, doesn’t have an entry time listed but holds a personal best of 4:23.24, dating back to his bronze-medal performance at the 2023 SEA Games. He hasn’t been able to get back to those levels of late, going 4:26.83 at the 2023 Worlds, 4:25.16 at the 2024 Worlds, and 4:30.90 at the Singapore Championships last summer.
His biggest opponent for the spot, on best times, is Durand. The Namibian competed at the 2024 Worlds in Doha as well, placing 22nd with a time of 4:42.64, but has in the intervening two years shed time left and right. His best and national record came last year at Junior Worlds, when the then 17-year-old finished 12th in prelims with a time of 4:23.92. His results this season are a little more disparate, having won his nationals in a time of 4:48.20. That said, he did have a winning margin of 20 seconds, so he may not have been rested.
If Durand and Tan are not on form, the last spot could be claimed by one of the two Jersey swimmers. A small crown dependency located in the Channel Islands, Jersey has two swimmers in the field: Samuel Sterry, entered with a time of 4:29.01, and Isaac Thompson, just on the other side of 4:30, with a seed of 4:31.82. Thompson, the youngest in the field at 18, finished 5th in the Junior final at the 2026 Aquatics GB Championships, while Sterry, just three months older, took 3rd in the B-final with a time of 4:29.09, just .08 off his result from the year before.
SwimSwam’s Picks
Place Name Nation Season Best Lifetime Best 1 Lewis Clareburt NZL 4:09.27 4:08.70 2 William Petric AUS 4:10.20 4:10.20 3 Max Litchfield ENG 4:11.69 4:08.85 4 Lorne Wigginton CAN 4:11.32 4:11.32 5 Brendon Smith AUS 4:12.70 4:09.27 6 Se-Bom Lee AUS 4:13.00 4:13.00 7 Charlie Hutchinson SCO 4:15.79 4:14.12 8 Oliver Durand NAM 4:42.64 4:23.92Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2026 Commonwealth Games Previews: Scott & Clareburt Aim to I.M.press with 200, 400 Repeat Titles
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