With Olympic Debut on the Horizon, Men’s 50 Butterfly Heating Up
The last time there was movement at the top of the 50-meter butterfly historical rankings was 2019. That year, the United States’ Caeleb Dressel registered the No. 2 performance in history with a 22.35 clocking at the World Championships. The effort established an American record and was just .08 shy of the world record, set by Ukrainian Andrii Govorov in 2018.
Meanwhile, Spain’s Rafael Munoz remains entrenched in the No. 3 position all-time in the 50 fly, thanks to the 22.43 mark he delivered at the 2009 Spanish Championships. Of course, it’s worth noting that Munoz’s best time was boosted by technology, as it arrived during the height of the super-suit era.
Still, the 2025 campaign was a banner year for the 50 butterfly, which – along with the 50 backstroke and 50 breaststroke – will be contested as an Olympic event for the first time at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles. During the 2025 season, four athletes joined the all-time top-10 in the event.
Behind respective times of 22.48 and 22.51, France’s Maxime Grousset and Switzerland’s Noe Ponti earned gold and silver medals at the World Championships in Singapore. The bronze medalist at the World Champs was Italian Thomas Ceccon, who touched the wall in 22.67 and surged into a tie for eighth in the all-time rankings. Also bumping into the historical top-10 was Ilya Kharun. At the Canadian Trials for the World Championships, Kharun popped a swim of 22.68, which sits 10th on the all-time list.
The final of the 50 butterfly at Worlds produced five national records, and certainly enhanced interest in the event on the road to LA28. Additionally, the 2025 season saw 15 individuals break the 23-second barrier, which broke the record of 13 sub-23 performances from 2023.
The All-Time Top-10 Performers
- Andrii Govorov, Ukraine (2018) – 22.27
- Caeleb Dressel, United States (2019) – 22.35
- Rafael Munoz, Spain (2009) – 22.43
- Maxime Grousset, France (2025) – 22.48
- Noe Ponti, Switzerland (2025) – 22.51
- Nicholas Santos, Brazil (2019) – 22.60
- Oleg Kostin, Russia (2023) – 22.62
- Thomas Ceccon, Italy (2025) – 22.67
- Milorad Cavic, Serbia (2009) – 22.67
- Ilya Kharun, Canada (2025) – 22.68
