Kós in 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality | Hungarian | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (2003-03-28)28 March 2003 (age 22)[2][3] Telki, Hungary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Strokes | Backstroke,butterfly,medley | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | BVSC-Zugló | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hubert Kós (born 28 March 2003) is a Hungarianswimmer and a member of theUniversity of Texas swim team. He is aworld junior record holder in the 200 metre individual medley and an Olympic champion in the 200 metre backstroke. At the2021 European Short Course Championships, he won the bronze medal in the 400 metre individual medley. At the2022 European Aquatics Championships, he won the gold medal in the200 metre individual medley. In 2023, he won the bronze medal in the 200 yard backstroke at the year'smen's NCAA Division I Swimming and Diving Championships. In 2024, he won the gold medal in the200 metre backstroke at the2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Kós has family links toCounty Kerry in southwestIreland, and has visited there several times since he was a boy.[4] His paternal grandmother is Irish, while his paternal grandfather is Hungarian who emigrated to Ireland with his family at the age of 6 in 1946. Kós' father spent his childhood inCork.[5]
He has two younger siblings: a brother, Olivér, who is also a swimmer, and a sister, Allison. He studied at theAmerican International School of Budapest.[6]
In the semifinals of themen's 200 metre individual medley event of the2020 European Aquatics Championships, Kós set a new World Junior Record with a time of 1:56.99.[7][8] He competed in themen's 200 metre individual medley at the2020 Summer Olympics.[9] At the2021 European Short Course Championships, conducted at thePalace of Water Sports inKazan,Russia, he won the bronze medal in the 400 metre individual medley with a time of 4:03.16.[10][11][12] Two days earlier at the Championships, he placed fourth in the final of the 200 metre individual medley with a European junior record time of 1:52.87.[13][14]
At the2022 European Aquatics Championships, held inRome,Italy, 19-year-old Kós won the gold medal in the200 metre individual medley with a time of 1:57.72.[15][16][17] Earlier in the competition, he placed fourth in the final of the100 metre butterfly with a personal best time of 51.33 seconds.[18] In November, at the 2022 Hungarian National Short Course Championships inKaposvár, he set his firstHungarian record in the final of the 100 metre individual medley to win the national title with a time of 52.82 seconds.[19][20][21][22]
On 3 March, at the 2023Pac-12 Conference Championships atKing County Aquatic Center inFederal Way,United States, Kós won the bronze medal in the 400 yard individual medley with a time of 3:37.68.[23][24] The day before, he placed tenth overall, second in the b-final, in the 200 yard individual medley with a time of 1:42.37.[25] Day four of four overall, 4 March, he placed fourth in the 200 yard backstroke with a time of 1:39.21, which was 2.27 seconds behind gold medalist Destin Lasco of theCalifornia Golden Bears.[26][27]
As a freshman (first year) at the2023 NCAA Division I Championships later in the month, Kós started by taking third-place in the b-final of the 200 yard individual medley on day two with a personal best time of 1:41.61 to contribute to a b-final podium sweep byArizona State Sun Devils swimmers (9th, 10th, 11th overall).[28][29] The next day, he placed fourth in the evening final of the 400 yard individual medley, finishing 8.18 seconds behind gold medalist and Sun Devils teammateLéon Marchand with a time of 3:37.00, which followed a personal best time of 3:36.86 in the morning preliminaries that qualified him for the final ranking fourth.[30][31] On the fourth and final day, he won the first NCAA Championships medal of his collegiate career in the 200 yard backstroke, winning the bronze medal with a personal best time of 1:37.96.[32][33]
At the 2023 TYRPro Swim Series in April inWestmont, United States, Kós placed fourth in the 100 metre backstroke on day three with a personal best time of 53.83 seconds.[34] This followed a fourth-place finish in the 400 metre individual medley on day two with a time of 4:14.08.[35] On the fourth and final day, he achieved a personal best time of 1:56.28 in the preliminaries of the 200 metre backstroke, qualifying for the final ranking first, before going on to win the final in a personal best and2023 World Aquatics Championships qualifying time of 1:55.95, which was 1.02 seconds faster than the next-fastest competitor.[36][37]
The following medals Kós has won atSwimming World Cup circuits.[38]
| Edition | Gold medals | Silver medals | Bronze medals | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 2022 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Total | 1 | 3 | 5 | 9 |
| Event | Time | Meet | Location | Date | Age | Notes | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 m backstroke | 24.50 | 2025 World Aquatics Championships | Singapore | 2 August 2025 | 22 | NR | [34] | |
| 100 m backstroke | 52.20 | 2025 World Aquatics Championships | Singapore | 29 July 2025 | 22 | NR | [34] | |
| 200 m backstroke | 1:53.19 | 2025 World Aquatics Championships | Singapore | 1 August 2025 | 22 | ER,NR | [37] | |
| 100 m butterfly | 50.55 | 2025 Hungarian National Championships | Budapest,Hungary | 12 April 2025 | 22 | [18] | ||
| 200 m individual medley | 1:55.34 | 2025 World Aquatics Championships | Singapore | 31 July 2025 | 22 | [7] |
| Event | Time | Meet | Location | Date | Age | Notes | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 m backstroke | 22.64 | 2024 World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25 m) | Budapest,Hungary | 13 December 2024 | 21 | NR | ||
| 100 m backstroke | 48.16 | World Aquatics Swimming World Cup 2025 | Toronto,Canada | 25 October 2025 | 22 | WR | ||
| 200 m backstroke | 1:45.12 | World Aquatics Swimming World Cup 2025 | Toronto,Canada | 23 October 2025 | 22 | WR | ||
| 100 m individual medley | 50.56 | World Aquatics Swimming World Cup 2025 | Toronto,Canada | 23 October 2025 | 22 | NR |
| Event | Time | Meet | Location | Date | Age | Notes | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 yd backstroke | 43.20 | 2025 NCAA Division I Championships | Federal Way,United States | 28 March 2025 | 21 | NCAA | ||
| 200 yd backstroke | 1:34.12 | 2025 NCAA Division I Championships | Federal Way,United States | 29 March 2025 | 21 | NCAA | ||
| 200 yd individual medley | 1:37.91 | 2025 NCAA Division I Championships | Federal Way,United States | 27 March 2025 | 21 |
Legend:b – b-final;h – preliminary heat;NCAA - NCAA record
| No. | Event | Time | Meet | Location | Date | Age | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 100 m individual medley | 52.82 | 2022 Hungarian National Short Course Championships | Kaposvár | 17 November 2022 | 19 | [19][20][21][22] |
| No. | Event | Time | Meet | Location | Date | Age | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 200 m individual medley | 1:56.99 | sf | 2020 European Aquatics Championships | Budapest | 19 May 2021 | 18 | [7][8] |
Legend:sf – semifinal