Tyler McGill
Tyler McGill is an American butterfly specialist whose been a member of two world champion relay teams from the United States. He was a member of the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team and earned a gold medal as a member of the U.S. 4×100-meter medley relay at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
Personal Life
Tyler Tennant McGill, the second child of four born to parents Jeff and Susan McGill, was born in Champaign, Ill. on Aug. 18, 1987. McGill grew up swimming for Storm Aquatics under Head Coach Will Barker, and attended Champaign Central High School. McGill was a three-time state champion and two time school record holder, and became a two-time Academic All-American, as well as a twelve-time All-American in high school. McGill’s excellence in the pool earned him Swimmer of the Year awards from both the Illinois High School Swim Association, as well as Illinois Swimming, Inc. McGill decided to attend Auburn University with a focus in economics.
College Swimming
McGill attended Auburn University and competed for the Tigers under head coach Brett Hawke from 2007 to 2010. During his four years of collegiate swimming, he won NCAA championships in the 400-yard freestyle and the 4×100-yard medley relay, and an SEC championship in the 800-yard freestyle.
In 2006-2007, during his inaugural year at Auburn, McGill became a two-time All-American at the NCAA Championships and got his first taste of being crowned an NCAA Team Champion. In his first trip to the NCAA Championship meet, McGill was part of Auburn’s sixth-place 800-yard freestyle relay team, and finished 11th in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:45.04. McGill also competed in the 100-yard butterfly, finishing 27th with a time of 47.67 seconds. Weeks before the NCAA championships, at the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Championships, McGill scored a fourth place in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:46.19, finished ninth in the 100-yard butterfly (47.95) and 16th in the 500-yard freestyle (4:29.85). McGill swam the leadoff leg on the second-place 800 free relay team, too.
During the 2007-2008 season, his sophomore year, McGill once again earned All-America honors in the 100-yard butterfly, along with two honorable mentions honors in the 200-yard butterfly and the 800-yard freestyle relay at the 2008 NCAA Championships. McGill finished eighth in the 100-yard butterfly (46.39), tenth in the 200-yard butterfly (1:43.15) and 17th in the 200-yard individual medley (1:46.04). He also swam the leadoff leg in Auburn’s 800-yard freestyle relay (6:26.11) that finished 11th. Weeks earlier, at the SEC Championships, McGill finished third in the 100-yard butterfly (46.89), and collected two sixth place finishes in the 200-yard butterfly (1:45.29) and the 200-yard individual medley (1:47.28). Once again, McGill also swam the leadoff leg in the 800-yard freestyle relay that finished third (6:26.10).
In 2008-2009, McGill’s third season at Auburn, he earned six All-America honors at the 2009 NCAA Championships en route to the second National Team Championship of his career. This team victory was highlighted by McGill’s butterfly leg in the national champion 400-yard medley relay squad that finished in a new NCAA record time of 3:01.39, and his anchor leg of the 400-yard freestyle relay that took first place in 2:46.67. Individually McGill scored second place in the 100-yard butterfly (44.63), improving upon his school-record time of 44.67 in the preliminary heats. Additionally McGill took fifth place in the 200-yard butterfly (1:42.44), finished 15th in the 200-yard individual medley (1:44.18), and helped the 800-yard freestyle relay to an eighth place finish (6:21.86). Previously, at the SEC championships, Tyler was a member of the 800-yard freestyle relay that took gold in a school-record time of 6:18.15, he was runner-up in the 200-yard IM in an Auburn-record time of 1:43.39, in addition to a third place the 100-yard butterfly (46.00) and seventh place in the 200-yard butterfly (1:44.34).
During the 2009-2010 year, McGill’s fourth and final season as an Auburn Tiger, he earned four All-American honors (200-yard freestyle relay, 200-yard IM, 400-yard medley relay, 100-yard butterfly) at the 2010 NCAA Championships en route to helping the team to a sixth-place finish. Individually, McGill placed fourth in the 100-yard butterfly (46.01) and 11th in the 200-yard IM (1:44.43). On the relays, McGill swam the butterfly leg of the 200-yard medley relay team that placed second with a time of 1:24.33, and was part of 200-yard freestyle relay team that finished runner-up with a time of 1:16.01. At the SEC Championships a few weeks prior to the NCAA Championships, McGill placed sixth in the 200-yard individual medley (1:44.04), second in 100-yard butterfly (46.00) and he won an SEC title in 400-yard medley relay as the fly leg on a team that clocked a time of 3:07.01.
National and International Swimming
During the summer of 2007, after his freshman year as an Auburn Tiger, McGill earned a spot on the U.S. National Team for the Japan International Grand Prix, where he placed third in the Consolation Final of the 200-meter butterfly (1:59.04) and fourth in the Consolation Final of the 100-meter butterfly fly (53.66). McGill also competed in the 100-meter freestyle and 200-meter freestyle. Additionally, at the U.S. Senior National Championships, McGill finished sixth in the 200-meter butterfly with a time 2:00.43, tenth in the 100-meter butterfly clocking in at 53.85 seconds, and 31st in the 200-meter individual medley with a solid time of 2:06.81.
In the summer of 2008, McGill competed in the 100-meter freestyle, 200-meter butterfly and 100-meter butterfly at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials. At the trials, McGill qualified for the finals of the 100-meter butterfly and earned a fourth-place finish with a time of 52.31 seconds. He also swam in the semifinals in the 200-meter butterfly, where he finished 10th overall (1:59.31), as well as finishing 40th in the 100-meter freestyle (50.34).
At the 2009 USA Nationals and World Championship Trials, McGill placed second to the World Record Setting Michael Phelps (50.22) in the 100-meter butterfly with a time of 51.06, earning a place to compete at the 2009 World Aquatic Championships in Rome, Italy. At the World Championships, McGill placed seventh in the 100-meter butterfly with a time of 51.42. He also competed in the 50-meter butterfly and placed 35th with a time of 23.93. McGill also swam the butterfly leg (50.82) in the preliminaries of the 4×100-meter medley relay for the U.S. team, which advanced to the final and won the gold medal.
In 2010, McGill earned a spot on the 2010 Pan Pacific Championship Team. He placed 21st in the 50-meter freestyle (22.66), 11th in the 50-meter butterfly (24.09). The highlight of this competition was the 100-meter butterfly, when McGill finished in second place (51.85) to Michael Phelps (50.86).
At the 2011 World Aquatics Championships in Shanghai, McGill won a bronze medal in the 100-meter butterfly, finishing behind Michael Phelps (50.71) and Konrad Czerniak (51.15) with a time of 51.26 seconds. On the last day of competition, McGill won a gold medal in the 4×100-meter medley relay for contributing a time of 51.00 in the heats.
At the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials in Omaha, Nebraska, the qualifying meet for the U.S. Olympic team, McGill placed second in the 100-meter butterfly event with a time of 51.32 seconds, just behind Michael Phelps (51.14) and just ahead of Ryan Lochte (51.65). At the 2012 Summer Olympics in in London, McGill placed sixth the 100-meter butterfly with a time of (51.88), and earned a gold medal by swimming the butterfly leg (51.53) in the preliminaries for the winning U.S. team in the 4×100-meter medley relay.
McGill failed to qualify for his third-straight World Championships after the London Olympics, and ended his 100 butterfly career with a third-place finish at the U.S. Open. And at 26 years old in 2013, soon after becoming a father, McGill retired from swimming.
Originally developed by Doug Lennox II
