14:37 1650 Freestyler Liam Custer Sends Verbal to Stanford’s Class of 2026

Fitter and Faster Swim Camps is the proud sponsor of SwimSwam’s College Recruiting Channel and all commitment news. For many, swimming in college is a lifelong dream that is pursued with dedication and determination. Fitter and Faster is proud to honor these athletes and those who supported them on their journey.

Sarasota Sharks 17-year-old Liam Custer has announced his commitment to Stanford’s class of 2026. Custer was one of two huge Commitments to the Stanford men’s team today, along with Flood Aquatics Swim Team’s Josh Zuchowski. The pair of commitments to Stanford is massive for the program, as Custer and Zuchowski are SwimSwam’s #3 and #2 recruits in the class of 2022 respectively.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CREa6ezM6me/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

“I am extremely excited to announce my commitment to swim and study at Stanford University! It has been my dream to attend Stanford since I was 10 years old, and I would like to thank my coaches, family, and teammates for their support in helping me reach this goal. I can’t wait for life on the farm! GO CARD!!!🌲🌲 #fearthetree” – Liam Custer via his Instagram post

Our #3 recruit in his high school class, Custer is already primed to be one of the top milers in the NCAA from day 1. Custer exploded coming out of the original Coronavirus shutdown in spring/summer of 2020. He’s shown significant improvement in all SCY races except the 100 back, which he’s only swum once since returning to meets last summer.

Here is a breakdown of Custer’s pre-pandemic lifetime bests versus his current lifetime bests:

As shown above, Custer has made extraordinary gains in his distance swimming over the past 1.5 years. He’s also the 15-16 boys National Age Group Record-holder in the 1650 free, after he broke the previous record, held by Sean Grieshop, last December. Although it’s his best event, Custer has only raced the SCY 1650 free officially 5 times in his career, and only once since 2019.

Additionally, if you take a look at the top times in the class of 2022, Custer holds 3. Of course, the 100 free isn’t competed at NCAAs at the DI level, but nonetheless, Custer is the clear cut top distance swimmer of the class right now.

**The 1000 free isn’t an event at the Division I NCAA Championships, but is swum instead of the 1650 in many Division I dual meets and is part of the NCAA program in Division II.

Custer’s best time in the 1650 would have earned him a 7th-place finish at the 2021 NCAAs, and would have been Stanford’s top time. Additionally, Custer’s mile would have been good for 2nd at the 2021 Pac-12 Championships.

Stanford finished 2nd at the 2021 Pac-12 Champs, just shy of 200 points behind Cal. The addition of Custer will bring immediate freestyle scoring power to the Cardinal.

If you have a commitment to report, please send an email with a photo (landscape, or horizontal, looks best) and a quote to [email protected].

About the Fitter and Faster Swim Tour 

Fitter & Faster Swim Camps feature the most innovative teaching platforms for competitive swimmers of all levels. Camps are produced year-round throughout the USA and Canada. All camps are led by elite swimmers and coaches. Visit fitterandfaster.com to find or request a swim camp near you.

FFT SOCIAL

Instagram – @fitterandfasterswimtour
Facebook – @fitterandfastertour
Twitter – @fitterandfaster

^{FFT is a SwimSwam partner.}