Carson Foster

Carson Foster

Personal information
National team	United States
Born	(2001-10-26) October 26, 2001 (age 24) [1] Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. [1]
Height	5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight	193 lb (88 kg)
Spouse	Meredith Wolf (2024)
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Event	Individual Medley
Strokes	Backstroke, butterfly, freestyle, individual medley
Club	Mason Manta Rays (High School) Mason, Ohio
College team	University of Texas, Austin (2021-23)
Coach	Ken Heis (Manta Rays) Eddie Reese (U. Texas) Bob Bowman (After 2023)
Medal record Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 0 1 1 World Championships (LC) 1 5 2 World Championships (SC) 4 5 2 World Junior Championships 4 3 0 Total 9 14 5 Men's swimming Representing the   United States Olympic Games 2024 Paris 4x200 m freestyle 2024 Paris 400 m medley World Championships (LC) 2022 Budapest 4×200 m freestyle 2022 Budapest 200 m medley 2022 Budapest 400 m medley 2023 Fukuoka 400 m medley 2023 Fukuoka 4×200 m freestyle 2024 Doha 200 m medley 2024 Doha 4×100 m freestyle 2024 Doha 4×200 m freestyle World Championships (SC) 2021 Abu Dhabi 4×200 m freestyle 2022 Melbourne 4×200 m freestyle 2022 Melbourne 4×100 m medley 2024 Budapest 4×200 m freestyle 2021 Abu Dhabi 200 m medley 2022 Melbourne 200 m medley 2022 Melbourne 400 m medley 2024 Budapest 400 m freestyle 2024 Budapest 400 m medley 2021 Abu Dhabi 400 m medley 2022 Melbourne 4×100 m freestyle World Junior Championships 2019 Budapest 200 m medley 2019 Budapest 4×100 m freestyle 2019 Budapest 4×200 m freestyle 2019 Budapest 4×100 m mixed freestyle 2017 Indianapolis 200 m backstroke 2017 Indianapolis 4×200 m freestyle 2019 Budapest 200 m backstroke Junior Pan Pac Championships 2018 Suva 200 m backstroke 2018 Suva 200 m medley 2018 Suva 400 m medley 2018 Suva 4×200 m freestyle

Carson James Foster (born October 26, 2001) is an American competitive swimmer, who competed for the University of Texas Longhorns and represented the United States at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, winning a bronze medal in the close finish of the 400-meter individual medley and a silver medal in the Men's 4 × 200 meter freestyle relay. ^[2] Outstanding in international competition, he was a triple gold medalist at the 2019 World Junior Championships in Budapest, and a double silver medalist at the 2017 World Junior Championships in Indianapolis. Foster also represented the United States at the 2018 Junior Pan Pacific Championships in Suva, Fiji, winning four gold medals in medley, freestyle and backstroke events. ^[1]

Early life

Foster was born October 26, 2001 in Cincinnati, Ohio to Mr. and Mrs. James Foster. He spent his early years in Arizona, where he learned to swim in his family's backyard pool with his two older siblings, brother Jake and sister Hannah, who both became collegiate swimmers. Carson began swimming competitively at the age of six. When he was 10, he broke the National Age Group record in the 50-meter butterfly for the 10 and under age group, with his swim of 29.91 seconds making him the youngest American to complete the race in less than 30 seconds. He attended the Cincinnati area's Sycamore Middle School and by 14, swimming for the Mason Manta Rays of Mason, Ohio, he qualified to compete in the 400 Individual Medley at the 2016 Olympic trials in Omaha, Nebraska.

Mason Manta Rays

At the Mason Manta Rays, a highly competitive swim club in the Northern Cincinnati suburb of Mason, Carson was trained and mentored by Head Coach Ken Heis, who began coaching the Rays in 2003. Heis, a Cincinnati native and former All American swimmer for Kenyon College, led the Manta Rays to Summer Junior National team championships with a first in 2018, and a third in 2019 during Foster's time with the team. The Manta Rays were Winter Junior National Team champions and ISCA Junior National Team Cup Champions in both 2017 and 2018. ^[3] From a swimming family, Carson and his two siblings Jake and Hannah all qualified for the U.S. Olympic swimming trials in 2016. Ending his years as a High School swimmer around 2020, Foster graduated Cincinnati's Sycamore High School. ^{[4] [5] [6] [2]}

Demonstrating diversity in stroke skills at the World Junior Championships in 2019, Foster won a silver and four gold medals in individual medley, freestyle and backstroke events, including a win in the 200-meter Individual Medley, which would become a signature event. ^[7]

University of Texas

From 2020-2023, Foster competed with the Longhorns swimming team at the University of Texas, in Austin. ^[1] At Texas, where he was managed by men's head swimming coach Eddie Reese from 2021-2023, he was an All American thirteen times, receiving the honor in the 200 backstroke, the 200 and 400 Individual Medley, the 400 freestyle relay, and the 800 freestyle relay. From 2021-2023, he was a national champion in three successive years in the 800 freestyle relay. Foster set a University of Texas School record in the 400 Individual Medley of 3:33.79. He turned professional after his junior year, forgoing his final two seasons of NCAA eligibility. ^[8]

Marriage

Shortly after the Olympics, on August 16, 2024, Carson married Meredith Wolf, a former Manta Rays swim team mate, with whom he attended Sycamore High School. Wolf was a 2022 graduate of the University of South Carolina, with a degree in International Business. Ending a two year engagement, their marriage took place at the large venue provided by Cincinnati's Monastery Event Center. ^{[2] [9]}

International career

2016 US Olympic Trials

Foster competed at the 2016 US Olympic Trials in Omaha, Nebraska in the 400-meter individual medley where he finished ranked 43rd overall in the preliminaries. ^[10]

2020 US Olympic Trials

In preparation for the June 2020 trials, Foster trained six days a week, with practices as long as three hours, often performing dryland training as well. ^[2] At the time of the 2020 US Olympic Trials in Omaha, Nebraska, Foster ranked eighth in the 200-meter freestyle with a time of 1:46.67. ^[11] He also ranked third in the 400-meter individual medley. ^[12] Foster swam a 1:57.99 for the 200 Individual Medley 2021 trial finals, placing fourth, with only the first two finishers qualifying for the team. In the finals of the 400 meter Individual Medley in the 2020 trials on June 13, 2021, where he finished in 4:10.86, Foster was leading through the final 100 meters but was passed by two competitors, Chase Kalisz, and Jay Litherland, who both qualified for the U.S. team. In a disappointing turn, though his time was just under two seconds behind the first and second place finishers in the close 2021 trial finish, Foster placed third, and failed to make the team. ^{[13] [14] [15]}

Only a month after the 2020 trials, held in 2021, Foster swam a 4:08:46 for the 400 Individual Medley at the Southern Sectionals meet in Austin, Texas. The time, which was 2 seconds under his time in the trials, would have qualified him in the event at the 2020 U.S. Omaha Olympic trials, and would have earned him a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. ^[2]

At the World Championships in 2022, in Individual Medley events, he captured two silver medals. Carson won three national titles in 2023. In that year, at the World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, he captured a silver at the World Championships for a second time. ^[16]

2024 Olympic medals

At the 2024 Olympic trials in Indianapolis, Foster made the U.S. Olympic team for the first time in the 400-meter Individual Medley swimming the fastest time in the world for 2024 with a 4:07.64. He credited performance coaches Susannah Muller and Jim Murphy with his improvement. ^[16] Foster also qualified in the 200-meter Individual Medley, winning the finals at the 2024 Indianapolis trials. ^[2]

At the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Foster won a bronze medal in the 400-meter individual medley on July 28, with a time of 4:08.66, finishing only .04 seconds behind the Japanese silver medalist, who placed second. He won a silver medal in the 4 × 200-meter freestyle relay, with the team of Luke Hobson, Drew Kibler, and Kieran Smith, where the team swam a combined time of 7:00.78. In the 200 Individual Medley finals, Foster finished fourth with a time of 1:56.10, placing just out of medal contention in a strong field. ^{[17] [18]}

In 2024, Carson continued to train in the Austin area, and was managed in workouts by Hall of Fame Coach Bob Bowman, who took over as Head Coach of the University of Texas team in 2024. ^[19]

References

1. "Carson Foster - Bio". SwimSwam . Retrieved July 28, 2021.
2. "Schmetzinger, Jack, "How Carson Foster Overcame Heartbreak", The Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati, Ohio, June 21, 2024, pg. C8
3. "Manta Rays Swim Team, Coaches and Directors, Ken Heis". masonswimming.org. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
4. Keith, Braden (July 21, 2012). "Carson Foster Becomes Youngest Swimmer To Ever Break 30 Seconds in 50 Fly". SwimSwam . Retrieved July 28, 2021.
5. "Nine Mason Manta Rays Qualify to Compete at U.S. Olympic Trials", The Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati, Ohio, June 30, 2016, pg. S5
6. "Olympics", The Akron Beacon Journal, Akron, Ohio, June 24, 2024, pg. A6
7. "olympics.com, Carson Foster". olympics.com. Retrieved December 4, 2025.
8. "University of Texas, Men's Swimming and Diving, Carson Foster". texaslonghorns.com. Retrieved December 4, 2025.
9. "Swimswam, Miller, Nicole, Carson Foster Marries Girlfriend Meredith Wolf After Returning From Paris". swimswam.com. Retrieved December 4, 2025.
10. "2016 Olympic Trials Results". USA Swimming . July 3, 2016. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
11. USA Swimming (June 15, 2021). "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Men's 200m Freestyle Final Results". Omega Timing . Retrieved June 16, 2021.
12. "USA Olympic Team Trials - Wave 2". swimcloud.com. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
13. "Level Up Introduction, Susannah Muller". levelupsportspsychology.com. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
14. "2021 Olympic Swimming Trials, Men's 200 IM", Lincoln Journal Star, Lincoln, Nebraska, June 19, 2021, page B2
15. "2021 Olympic Swimming Trials, Men's 400 IM", Lincoln Journal Star, Lincoln, Nebraska, June 14, 2021, pg. B2
16. "Ross, Andy, World Aquatics, June 17, 2024, Carson Foster Overcomes Woes to make first Olympic team". worldaquatics.com. Retrieved December 4, 2025.
17. "Results" (PDF). olympics.com. International Olympic Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 17, 2024. Retrieved May 17, 2025.
18. "2024 Olympic Results, 200 Individual Medley", Springfield News-Sun, Springfield, Missouri, August 4, 2024, pg. D2
19. "SocialKick196 Carson Foster". socialkickswim.com. Retrieved December 4, 2025.

External links

• Carson Foster at World Aquatics
• Carson Foster at SwimRankings.net
• Carson Foster at Olympics.com
• Carson Foster at Olympedia