By Braden Keith on SwimSwam
2025 WORLD AQUATICS SWIMMING WORLD CUP – Toronto
- October 23-25, 2025
- Toronto, Canada
- SCM (25 meters)
- Meet Central
- Psych Sheets
- Live Results
- Recaps
Amid World Cup and World Records that have fallen over the last three weeks at the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup Series, 22-year-old New Zealander Cameron Gray may have quietly had his breakthrough.
The 6’5″ sprinter broke the New Zealand National Record on Thursday in the 50 free – for the third time in two weeks, finishing tied-for-6th in the event final in 21.17.
Gray’s national record entering the series was a 21.50 from the December 2022 World Short Course Swimming Championships. In the meet’s first stop in Carmel, he swam 21.53 in prelims, which missed the final and his record.
Then in Westmont, he swam 21.45 in prelims to shave .05 seconds off his own National Record.
He lowered it again on Thursday morning in Toronto, swimming 21.30 – qualifying 8th for the final and his first evening swim of this 50 free in the series. He took advantage of the opportunity to lower the record again to 21.17.
Splits Progression:
| Prior NZ Record | Not a NZR | NZ Record #1 | NZ Record #2 | NZ Record #3 | |
| 2022 SC Worlds | WC Carmel Prelims | WC Westmont Prelims | WC Toronto Prelims |
WC Toronto Finals
|
|
| RT | 0.67 | 0.68 | 0.64 | 0.64 | 0.65 |
| 25m | 10.35 | 10.45 | 10.39 | 10.31 | 10.24 |
| 50m | 11.15 | 11.08 | 11.06 | 10.99 | 10.93 |
| Total | 21.5 | 21.53 | 21.45 | 21.30 | 21.17 |
The pattern is subtle but clear: he’s getting better in both phases of the race, but especially coming home off the turn.
Gray’s long course best is a 22.33 from the 2023 New Zealand National Championships, almost two-and-a-half years ago. He didn’t race at the 2024 World Championships. In spite of a drought in the 50, he did break the New Zealand Record in the 100 free at the 2024 New Zealand Olympic Trials in 48.26. He would go almost a second slower at the Paris Olympics to finish 31st.
On Thursday, Gray finished tied-for-6th in the 50 free with Canadian Ruslan Gaziev and Estonian Ralf Tribuntsov. Tribuntsov’s swim of 21.17 set a new Estonian Record, winner Josh Liendo‘s 20.31 set a new Canadian Record, and 5th place finisher Lamar Taylor‘s swim broke a Bahamian Record in 21.00.
Taylor, who didn’t race in Carmel, has likewise broken the Bahamas’ National Record three times in two weeks. First he swam 21.44 in the 50 free in prelims in Westmont to shave .01 seconds off his own record (coincidentally also from the 2022 World Championships).
He then swam 21.08 in prelims on Thursday and 21.00 in finals to break the record two more times.
Taylor trains in the United States at the University of Tennessee. He is both an NCAA Division II National Champion at Henderson State (100 free, 200 free relay) and an NCAA Division I National Champion at Tennessee (200 free relay, 400 free relay).
Read the full story on SwimSwam: New Zealand’s Cameron Gray, Bahamas’ Lamar Taylor Break Records For the 3rd Time in 2 Weeks
