Jake Foster is a competitive swimmer who represents the United States internationally. He was the boy high school swimmer of the year in 2019.
High School (Sycamore High School)
Jake Foster was ranked #2 on SwimSwam’s Top 20 NCAA Recruits list for the class of 2019. On February 19, 2018, Foster announced his verbal commitment to the University of Texas.
At the Ohio High School Athletic Association State Championships in February 2019, Foster won the 200 IM (1:43.99) and 100 breast (53.76) titles, breaking Ohio state high school records in both events. He also swam on the winning 200 and 400 free relays a the same meet. He shared the most outstanding swimmer award with his brother, Carson.
Later in 2019, Jake was awarded the NHSCA Boy’s swimmer of the year.
2019 Southern Premier
In Nashville at the 2019 Southern Premier, Foster went a slew of best times. This included 52.92 in the 100 breast (1st), 3:42.28 in the 400 IM (1st), 4:17.94 in the 500 free (1st), and 1:54.27 in the 200 breast (1st).
Foster was ranked as the 17th best NCAA swimming recruit of the past decade.
College (Texas)
2019-20
Foster started the season with solid times at the Texas Orange and White Intersquad. Foster (Orange), had to settle for 2nd place in the 200 breast (1:56.22) behind Caspar Corbeau but wrapped up the individual competitions with a 1:46.28 victory in the 200 IM. Longhorn freshman Jake Foster kicked off his NCAA career with a win in the men’s 1000 free in the Texas vs. Kentucky dual meet. Foster swam a 9:06.20 and also swam a quick 3:51.77 in the 400 IM later in the meet as an exhibition swimmer.
At the 2019 Minnesota Invite, Foster made his presence known, posting 1:43.16 200 IM on night 2 to take 4th in a strong field after a 1:43.51 prelims swim. Both swims were best times for Foster, who had previously been 1:43.99. The next morning he posted a 3:43.25 400 IM to take second seed and followed through with a 3:40.71 in finals to take 3rd and post the 3rd fastest time in the NCAA. The swim was another best time for Foster. Now on a roll, he wrapped up the meet with another best time with a 1:53.15 200 breast.
At the 2020 Big 12 Championships, he was off his mid-season times but claimed runner-up in the 200 IM (1:44.82), his first-ever Big 12 title in the 400 IM (3:43.92), and 5th in the 200 breast (1:57.37). This meet marked the end of his first collegiate season as COVID-19 caused the cancelation of the 2020 NCAA Championships.
2020-2021
With his younger brother Carson now joining him at Texas, Foster kicked off his season at the Texas First Chance Invitational, posting a 3:43.30 400 IM behind his brother’s 3:35.27 and Shaine Casas’s 3:38.22. The next day he posted a respectable 1:43.37 200 IM. Just 13 days later, Foster faced off against Casas again at the Texas vs. Texas A&M dual meet. The two and the younger faced off but it was all Casas as he posted a 1:44.87 while Jake Foster finished 3rd in the race as an exhibition swimmer with a 1:49.06. Foster also posted a 1:59.77 200 breast and 1:47.07 200 fly, both for 3rd.
At the Texas Hall of Fame Invitational, Foster shaved .59 seconds off his 200 IM best time. He posted a 1:42.59 to take second behind his brother Carson. The Foster brothers went 1-2 in the men’s 400 IM, though neither was able to eclipse their best times as the older Foster posted a 3:41.49 for second. On the last night of competition, Foster took his first win with a 1:54.83 200 breast.
At the Texas vs. SMU dual meet, Foster, showing a rarer side of his ability, took 2nd in in 8:54.95, a lifetime best by 11 seconds which him the 6th-fastest in the NCAA.
At the 2021 Big 12 Conference Championships, Foster claimed his second consecutive 200 IM runner-up with a 1:43.43 behind his younger brother. As the reigning champion in the 400 IM, Foster faced a stronger field this year mostly due to his little brother. Undeterred, Foster posted a 3:40.67 prelims swim which shaved .04 off his best time. The younger Foster lurked as the 2nd seed, about two seconds behind him. Unfortunately for Jake, Carson edged him out 3:40.22 to 3:40.35 in the final but the elder Foster was able to take more time off his previous best. Foster also posted a 1:55.13 200 breast for 3rd.
At the 2021 Men’s NCAA Championships, Foster was able to score in all three of his events. In the 200 IM on night two, Foster posted a 1:42.17 for 10th, marking a .36-second improvement from his 1:42.53 morning personal best. Foster was on point the next day earning the 4th seed in the 400 IM. His 3:39.69 was a personal best and his first time under the elite 3:40 barrier. Foster wasn’t quite able to replicate the same performance in finals but still posted a 3:40.16 for 5th. The meet was not over for Foster just yet as he posted a 1:52.85 200 breast in prelims to qualify for the B final. Foster made the most of his second swim and dropped a bit more time with a 1:52.59 to maintain his 10th-place seed in the finals. He ended the meet with 28 points, helping Eddie Reese and the Longhorns win their 15th national title.
2021-22
Foster, swimming for the White team, placed 2nd in the 200 IM in 1:44.28, just over 2 seconds over his lifetime best at the 2021 Texas Orange and White Intrasquad. He followed that up with a swift 1:54.99 200 breast for another 2nd. He also took second in the 100 breast with a 53.43
At the Texas vs. Virginia dual meet, Foster posted a 3:45.94 400 IM behind his brother’s absurd, fastest-ever unsuited 3:40.48. He also took the win in the 200 breast with a strong 1:55.91.
Highlighter by a fantastic swims across his signature events, Foster had an excellent Minnesota Invite. He posted a 1:42.56 200 IM in prelims followed by a 1:42.98 in finals. Foster kept the pedal to the metal with a pair of swift 3:40s in prelims (3:40.69) and finals (3:40.56). He wrapped up the meet with another season-best, posting a 1:53.39 in the 200 breast for 4th.
At the Texas vs SMU dual meet, Foster posted a wicked 8:49.85. While that swim usually wins a dual meet, especially considering it was the 3rd fastest time in the country, the two faster times in the country were posted right before he finished courtesy of his teammates Luke Hobson and David Johnston who battled to an 8:43.66 and an 8:43.96 respectively.
To kick off his 2022 Big 12 Championships, Foster posted a 1:42.84 200 IM for runner-up behind his brother. Foster was significantly faster than either of his prior Big 12 Championships, showing good signs for the meet to come. After posting a relatively mild 3:44.82 400 IM in prelims, Foster posted a season-best 3:40.42, again earning runner-up to his brother. On the final day, foster posted a swift 1:53.86 200 breast to near his season best and claim the top seed out of prelims. It was Deja vu in the final for Foster as he again placed 2nd to a teammate, but this time it was Caspar Corbeau with a 1:51.81 to Foster’s season best of 1:53.13.
In his first race of 2022 NCAA Men’s Championships, Foster faced the fastest 200 IM prelims ever but managed to sneak in the A final with a 1:40.91 personal best for 8th. In the final, Foster improved a further .28 seconds to 1:40.63 and maintained 8th. Foster was as sharp as he has ever been the next morning, posting a massive best time of 3:37.33 in the 400 IM. After taking the 3rd seed, Foster dropped to 5th in the final with a 3:38.24, still under his prior best. In his fifth race of the meet, Foster posted his 4th best time of the meet with a 1:51.40 200 breast however Foster found himself on the outside looking in as the 9th seed for finals. He dropped to 12th in the finals with a slight add to go 1:51.82.
To wrap up the season, Foster was named Big 12 Men’s Swimming and Diving Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
2022-23
As is the norm, Foster kicked off his final season at the renamed Sam Kendricks Orange & White Classic. Kendricks, a UT alum and former coach, rose to prominence as an announcer for the sport and became one of the most notable names in the game. Kendricks passed away from Merkel Cell Carcinoma. Foster posted a decent 53.44 100 breast.
At the SMU Classic, Foster dominated the 400 IM ‘B’ final in a scintillating time of 3:41.97 (just 0.87 seconds off what it took to make the ‘B’ final at NCAAs last year) to break Dan Wallace’s meet record of 3:42.11, but Carson Foster obliterated his older brother’s short-lived meet record by going 3:38.79 in the ‘A’ final. Foster also had a strong swim in the ‘B’ final of this race, going 53.00; the swim was just 0.08 seconds off his best time set back in 2019.
Not long after the SMU Classic, Foster announced “with some degree of certainty” that he would not take a COVID 5th year. “I may still be swimming next year as a pro, but that situation is still in flux with whether I will be enrolling in med school next fall,” told Foster to SwimSwam.
Foster also confirmed that he would be retiring from competitive swimming if he enrolled in medical school, because “it won’t be possible for [him] to balance the demand of med school and competitive swimming while doing them at the level that [he] wants to.” In february 2022, he scored a 519 on his MCAT test, which is an exam required for admission to the majority of medical schools in the United States. The highest possible MCAT score is a 528, so a 519 would put Foster in the 96th percentile of all medical school applicants, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges.
At the highly anticipated Texas vs. UVA dual meet, Foster did not disappoint. He showed off his breast sprinting chops with a 23.66 50 breast split on the Texas C 200 medley relay followed by a 52.36 100 breast for 3rd. The 100 breast was a huge best time for Foster, who had swum a 52.92 all the way back in February 2019. Day 1 wasn’t quite over for Foster as he took 3rd again in the non-typical 100 IM in 48.20. The next day, Foster posted a 1:44.06 season-best to claim 1st place.
Swimming a slightly truncated schedule at the Minnesota Invite in anticipation of the upcoming Short Course World Championships, Foster posted a 1:52.08 200 breast in time trials on night 1. The next morning he relaxed through a slow 1:45.95 200 IM. Foster shaved some time off in the final to go 1:43.64, a season-best. On the 3rd day, he posted a 3:44.70 prelims 400 IM before pulling out of the finals in anticipation of Short Course Worlds, now less than two weeks out from the start of the competition.
Foster won the 100 breast (53.49), 200 breast (1:56.08), and posted a 52.17 100 breast split in the Texas vs. Alabama vs. Ohio State tri-meet. At the Texas vs. NC State meet on night 1, Foster posted a 23.45 50 breast split and a swift 51.85 100 breast personal best before posting a 1:45.03 200 IM just a few minutes later. The next day he posted a 1:53.62 200 breast to take the win.
For his final Big 12 Championships, Foster earned a spot on his first A relay. With Foster splitting a 1:33.94 on the Texas 4×200 free relay, the team won by over 13 seconds over the 2nd place team. He set a season-best 200 IM in 1:43.31 in prelims followed by a 1:42.50 in the finals for runner-up beside his brother Carson. The next day, he swam a laid-back 3:45.92 400 IM morning time before smashing a 3:42.85 in the finals for 3rd. Foster posted a 1:53.65 200 breast in the final prelims of the meet and a slightly faster 1:53.61 in the finals for 3rd place.
At his final NCAA Championships, Foster qualified for the A final of the 200 IM with a 1:41.52 before maintaining his 8th place seed in the final while dropping a 1:41.03. In his best event, the 400 IM, foster posted a season-best 3:39.09 to qualify 8th for the A final. Despite adding in the final with a 3:40.03, Foster move up one place to score 7th. In what could have been the final race of his NCAA career, Foster was able to extend his collegiate career by a few hours by posting a 1:52.26 to qualify 16th. In his final swim for the Longhorns, Foster posted a season-best 1:51.85, rising to 12th.
Foster scored in every event he raced at NCAAs, with consistent 28/30/28 point totals across the three meets contested.
Despite getting accepted into Dell Medical School, Foster deferred his enrollment in order to pursue his goals in the pool for the coming year by turning pro.
National/International Competition
2018 Jr Pan Pacific Championships (Suva, Fiji)
On day 1, Foster placed 11th in the 200 fly (2:01.25), notching a career best. The next night, he had a head-to-head battle with his brother, Carson, in the 400 IM, where Jake came out with a silver and career best of 4:15.78.
On the last day of competition, Foster pulled a double, swimming the 200 breast and 200 IM in prelims. He scratched the 200 breast after placing 11th in the morning to focus on the 200 IM, where he placed 9th, winning the B heat in a time of 2:03.25
2018 Speedo Winter Junior Championships – East
At winter jrs, Foster was a five-time finalist. He touched for 2nd in the 400 IM (3:43.64), 200 IM (1:44.57), 100 breast (53.20) and 200 breast (1:56.01), all of which were best times besides the 200 breast. He also finished 7th in the 200 fly (1:47.36).
2019 Phillips 66 Summer National Championships
Foster finished third in the 200 IM (1:59.15) and 400 IM (4:15.03) at Summer Nationals, while also placing ninth in the 200 breast (2:11.01), 25th in the 200 fly (1:59.43), and 25th in the 100 breast (1:01.85), all of which were best times.
2021 US Olympic Team Trials (Omaha, Nebraska)
After posting a series of sub 4:20 400 IMs highlighted by a 4:15.66 at the 2021 Longhorn Elite Invite as well as a 1:59.71 200 IM and a 2:12.73 200 breast at the same meet, Foster seemed primed for the 2021 US Olympic Team Trials in Omaha. He posted a season-best 4:15.26 in the prelims of the 400 IM, qualifying 5th for finals. In the finals, he maintained seed but dropped 1:52 seconds to go a best time of 4:13.74.
Foster made it out of prelims again, this time in 7th with a huge 2:10.83 200 breast. The time bested the 2:11.01 he posted at 2019 Summer Nationals. Similarly to the 400 IM, Foster maintained seed with another personal best (2:10.13) in semis. In his second-ever Olympic Trials final, Foster placed 6th, adding from his prior swims with a 2:11.24.
Foster wrapped up his meet with the 200 IM where he made semis with a 2:00.72. In semis, he neared his season best with a 1:59.72 but found himself on the outside looking in as he placed 10th. Foster would earn a spot on the 2021-22 National Team thanks to his 400 IM.
2021 ST TXLA Speedo Southern Sectionals (Austin, Texas)
At his home pool in late July, Foster posted a personal best of 1:59.12 in the 200 IM.
2022 Phillips 66 International Team Trials (Greensboro, North Carolina)
Coming off his best NCAAs yet, Foster opened his meet with the 200 breast. Qualifying 1st for the final, Foster placed a devastating 3rd. Posting a best 2:09.73, Foster was less than a second off Nic Fink and Charlie Swanson who tied for 2nd. Foster finished out the meet with his typical 400 and 200 IMs where he placed 5th (4:13.76) and 6th (1:58.64) respectively. The 200 IM was a best time for Foster while the 400 IM was only .02 seconds off his best from Olympic Trials.
2022 US Summer Nationals
Swimming his usual 200 breast and 400 IM but dropping the 200 IM for the 200 fly, the highlight of Foster’s meet where he posted a personal best 2:09.00 for 2nd behind Matt Fallon’s 2:07.91. The swim made him the #13 American in the 200 breast all-time. In the 400 IM, he posted more a reasonable time of 4:19.10 in prelims, and in the 200 fly, he posted a 1:59.43.
2022 Short Course World Championships
Foster was named to the US Team for the 2022 Short Course World Championships in the 400 IM, joining his brother for his first senior-level international meet. He swam a solid 1:45.29 200 free split to help the American 4×200 free relay qualify first for the final. In the final, Foster and fellow Jake, Jake Magahey were replaced by his brother, Carson, and Kieran Smith. The finals squad netted gold and the world record, earning Foster his first international senior medal.
In his first-ever SCM 400 IM, Foster took 4th in prelims with a 4:02.64. Joined in the final by his brother, a rare occurrence on the international swimming stage, Foster posted a 4:02.51 for 6th.
2023 Mission Viejo Pro Swim Series (Mission Viejo, California)
Foster put on a breaststroke show in southern California. In his opening swim of the meet, he clocked a 1:01.34 to take down his previous best time from the 2019 Summer Nationals (1:01.85). He also cracked the 2024 Olympic Trials qualifying cut of 1:02.19. In the finals, he slashed a further .53 seconds off with a blazing 1:00.81 for second. He was out quickly with a 28.35 at the turn. The next morning was more of the same as he 28.08 50 breast personal best. Foster was just off in 28.32 in the finals. Foster led the prelims for the 200 breast on the final day with a strong 2:13.56. In the finals, he barely held off a charging Nic Fink to win in 2:11.58.
2023 South Texas Open (Austin, Texas)
At his home pool just a few weeks out from trials, Foster flashed his breaststroke ability. In his 3rd long course 100 breast of the season, Foster had his 3rd 100 breast time drop. He tore .59 seconds off his prior best set just weeks ago with a scintillating 1:00.22. Foster also posted a remarkable 2:09.38 200 breast to become the first American under 2:10 for the 2022-23 season.
