The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Hall of Honor
- Induction:
- 2016
Sport: Swimming
Inducted: 2016
A five-time Olympic gold medalist, nine-time world champion, six-time NCAA champion and still the current world record holder in the 200-meter backstroke, Aaron Peirsol set a standard in the backstroke that continues even five years after his retirement. One of five Texas swimmers to compete for the United States in the Olympics three times, Peirsol first became an Olympian at age 17, two years before becoming a Longhorn. The Irvine, Calif. native won silver in the 200m backstroke at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. He won his first international gold medal a year later when he claimed the 200m backstroke at the 2001 FINA World Championships. In March of 2002, at just 18 years of age, he set his first world record in the 200m backstroke (1:55.15). Peirsol enrolled at Texas in the fall of 2002 and made his presence felt right away. He was selected as the 2003 NCAA Swimmer of the Year after delivering a freshman campaign in which he helped Texas to three NCAA relay titles – two of which set NCAA and American records – and produced an NCAA title-winning swim in the 200-yard backstroke that yielded NCAA and American records. Peirsol defended his 200-yard backstroke title at the 2004 NCAA Championships and helped the Longhorns win back-to-back titles in the 400-yard medley relay. He elected to turn professional following his sophomore season in advance of the 2004 Athens Olympics. He won gold in all three of his events at his second Olympics, claiming the world record on his way to gold in the 100m backstroke, and swept both backstroke events with his gold medal swim in the 200m. He capped the meet by joining Texas teammates Brendan Hansen and Ian Crocker on the 4x100m medley relay that set a world record and won gold. Peirsol maintained his elite form going into the 2008 Olympics, as he lowered his world record in the 200m backstroke at the U.S. Olympic Trials. In Beijing, Peirsol won his second straight gold medal in the 100m backstroke and added a silver medal in the 200m backstroke. He joined Hansen on the 4x100m medley relay and helped the Americans to gold once more. Peirsol competed in his last major world meet in 2009 at the FINA World Championships in Rome. He reclaimed the world record en route to gold in the 200m backstroke and joined former Longhorn Dave Walters and Longhorn Aquatics teammate Eric Shanteau to set a world record and win gold in the 4x100m medley relay. He won gold in the 100m backstroke and 4x100m medley relay at the 2010 Pan Pacific Championships before retiring in 2011. His world record in the 200m backstroke remains five years after his retirement. Peirsol earned his bachelor's degree from UT in 2007. Today, he is a swimming coach at Newport Harbor High School, his alma mater in Newport Beach, Calif. He also serves as a color analyst for Longhorn Network swimming telecasts.
