Canadian Olympic silver medalist Joshua Liendo of Toronto, Ontario set the National Collegiate Athletic Association record in the men’s 100 metre butterfly at the 2026 NCAA Division I Swimming and Diving Championships on Thursday. What was so special about Liendo’s accomplishment at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Georgia, is that he broke the previous record twice.
Liendo had a NCAA record time of 42.54 seconds in the preliminary heats, and then won the gold medal in the finals on Thursday night with a time of 42.49 seconds. The original NCAA record belonged to Caleb Dressel of the United States with a time of 42.80 seconds.
Liendo is representing the University of Florida Gators at the 2026 NCAA Division I Swimming Championships. Hubert Kos of Hungary (representing the University of Texas) won the silver medal with a time of 42.54 seconds. Ilya Kharun of the United States (representing Arizona State) had a time of 42.92 seconds.
This was the third straight year Liendo won the gold medal in the men’s 100 metre butterfly at the NCAA Division I Championship. He had a time of 43.07 seconds in winning gold in 2024 in Indianapolis, and a time of 43.06 seconds in winning gold in 2025 in Seattle.
Liendo has won two other medals at the 2026 NCAA Division I Championships, He was part of the Gators team that won the silver medal in the men’s 200 metre freestyle relay and the men’s 200 metre medley relay. Liendo’s Olympic silver medal came in the men’s 100 metre butterfly at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. His NCAA title will give him confidence as he prepares for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
