Lukas Märtens

2021

In July 2021, Märtens competed at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. His first event was the 400 m freestyle, where he finished twelfth in a time of 3:46.30.^[2] He then competed in the 200 m freestyle, finishing seventeenth with a time of 1:46.69.^[3] He then swam the first leg of the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay, splitting 1:46.68 to help Germany finish seventh overall.^[4] Märtens' final event was the 1500 m freestyle, where he recorded a time of 14:59.45 to finish eleventh.^[5]

In December 2021, Märtens competed at the 2021 World Championships (25 m) in Abu Dhabi. He finished twenty-second in 400 m freestyle in a time of 3:43.64.^[6] He then swam the 200 m freestyle, finishing thirtieth in a time of 1:46.52.^[7] His final event was the 1500 m freestyle, where he recorded a time of 14:37.60 to finish ninth, missing the final by 1.33 seconds.^[8]

2022

In March 2022, Märtens competed at the Gothaer & Friends Meet in Magdeburg, and achieved a personal best time of 14:40.28 in the 1500 m freestyle.^[9]

In April 2022, Märtens competed at the Stockholm Open, recording a personal best of 3:41.60 in the 400 m freestyle. This was the fastest time in the event globally since 2017.^[10] He then won the 200 m freestyle in a personal best time of 1:45.44.^[11] He concluded the competition with a German record in the 800 m freestyle, recording a time of 7:41.43 to surpass Florian Wellbrock's mark of 7:41.77 from 2021.^[12]

In June 2022, Märtens competed at the 2022 World Championships in Budapest. He won the silver medal in the 400 m freestyle in a time of 3:42.85.^[13] He then competed in the 200 m freestyle, where he finished seventh in a time of 1:45.73. Despite going into the 800 m freestyle with the second-fastest qualifying time, Märtens finished fourteenth in the heats in a time of 7:55.21 and did not qualify for the final.^[14] He also lost his national record to Wellbrock.^[15] Märtens' final event was the 1500 m freestyle, where he finished fourth in a time of 14:40.89.^[16]

In August 2022, Märtens competed at the 2022 European Championships in Rome. He swam the first leg of the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay, splitting 1:46.22 to contribute to Germany's final time of 7:13.58. His team finished seventh overall.^[17] He then won the silver medal in the 800 m freestyle with a time of 7:42.65.^[18] He then won the 400 m freestyle in a time of 3:42.50, breaking the championship record of 3:44.01 set by Italian Gabriele Detti in 2016.^[19]

2023

In July 2023, Märtens competed at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka. In the 400 m freestyle, he won the bronze medal in a time of 3:42.20.^[20] He then swam the 800 m freestyle, finishing fifth in the event. His time of 7:39.48 reclaimed the national record from Wellbrock, and he surpassed the previous mark by 0.22 seconds.^[21][22] In the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay, he swam the first leg in a personal best time of 1:44.79. Germany finished seventh overall in a time of 7:06.14.^[23] In the 1500 m freestyle, Märtens finished fifth in a time of 14:44.51.^[24]

2024

In February 2024, Märtens competed at the 2024 World Championships in Doha. He won the bronze medal in the 400 m freestyle in a time of 3:42.96.^[25] He then came fifth in the 200 m freestyle, recording a time of 1:45.33.^[26] His final event was the 200 m backstroke, where he posted 1:58.24 to finish thirteenth.^[27]

In April 2024, Märtens competed at the German Championships in Berlin. He achieved a personal best in the 400 m freestyle, recording a time of 3:40.33.^[28] In the 200 m freestyle, he recorded 1:44.14 to achieve another personal best.^[29] Märtens then swam a personal best in the 200 m backstroke, winning in a time of 1:56.00.^[30]

At the 2024 Olympics in Paris, Märtens won the gold medal in the 400 m freestyle with a time of 3:41.78.^[31] He then competed in the 200 m freestyle, recording a time of 1:45.46 to finish fifth.^[32] He swam in the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay, splitting 1:45.31 on the first leg to put Germany in second place at the 200 m mark. His team eventually finished eighth in a time of 7:09.56.^[33] In the 200 m backstroke, Märtens recorded 1:55.97 to finish eighth.^[34]

2025

In April 2025, Märtens competed at the Stockholm Open. He went 3:39.96 in the 400 m freestyle, breaking the world record of 3:40.07 set by compatriot Paul Biedermann in 2009.^[35] The following day, he won the 200 m freestyle in a time of 1:45.55.^[36] He then set a new German record in the 800 m freestyle with a time of 7:39.10.^[22]

In July 2025, Märtens competed at the 2025 World Championships in Singapore. He won the gold medal in the 400 m freestyle with a time of 3:42.35, 0.02 ahead of the silver medalist. His next event was the 800 m freestyle, where he recorded 7:40.19 to win the bronze medal.^[37] In the 200 m backstroke, he came twentieth in a time of 1:57.31.^[38] He swam the first leg of the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay, splitting 1:45.65 to help Germany finish ninth in a time of 7:07.54, missing the final by 0.66 seconds.^[39] His final event was the 4 × 100 m medley relay. He split 54.96 on the backstroke leg in the heats, however, Germany was disqualified for an early relay exchange.^[40]

In December 2025, Märtens competed at the 2025 European Short Course Championships in Lublin, swimming in two events. He won the silver medal in the 400 m freestyle with a personal best time of 3:36.51.^[41] He then came tenth in the 200 m freestyle in a time of 1:42.28.^[42]

2026

In April 2026, Märtens set a new German record in the 200 m backstroke, setting a time of 1:55.85, breaking Jan-Philip Glania's 2012 mark by 0.02 seconds.^[43]