NCAA Relay Record Holder Adam Chaney Enters The Transfer Portal As a Graduate Transfer
01/13/2025 02:48 PM
By Sophie Kaufman on SwimSwam
Fifth-year and NCAA relay record holderAdam Chaneyhas entered the transfer portal as a graduate transfer. He competed for the University of Florida during his first four years of college and appeared on Florida's roster as a graduate student at the start of the season. He remained on the roster throughout the first semester, even though he did not compete. However, as of this month, his name is no longer listed.
Entering the transfer portal does not mean a student-athlete has to transfer, nor does it preclude them from returning to their prior university.
Chaney has been integral to the Gators' roster throughout his Gainesville career. He scored 18 points individually at the 2024 NCAA Championships, highlighted by a third-place finish in the 100 backstroke as he broke 44 seconds for the first time in his career (43.99).
Best Times (SCY):
- 50 freestyle: 18.71
- 50 freestyle split: 18.26
- 100 freestyle: 41.74
- 100 freestyle split: 40.80
- 100 backstroke: 43.99
Chaney’s most significant contributions to the team came in the relays, where he played a vital role in multiple NCAA record-setting performances. He first assisted Florida in breaking the NCAA record for the 200-medley relay at the 2022 NCAA Championships. Then, at the 2023 NCAA Championships, he was a part of all three NCAA record-setting relays for Florida, including the 200 freestyle relay, where he, Josh Liendo, Eric Friese, and Macguire McDuff broke Auburn's legendary super-suited record from 2009 with a 1:13.35. Chaney also contributed to Florida setting then-NCAA records in the 400 medley relay (2:58.32) and the 400 freestyle relay (2:44.07), as the team won three out of five relays at the championships.
Chaney, Julian Smith, Liendo, and McDuff extended Florida's NCAA relay win streak to four when they opened the 2024 NCAA Championships by winning the opening 200 medley relay in an NCAA record time of 1:20.15.
At the conference level, Chaney is a two-time SEC Champion in the 100 backstroke (2022, 2023) and took second in 2024 behind Florida's Jonny Marshall. He's contributed heavily to the Florida men winning 12 straight SEC Championships.
That streak is now heavily under threat, as are the Gators' NCAA hopes. Chaney's departure from the roster is the second blow the team's relays have taken this season, as McDuff did not return to the team for his senior season and has since entered the transfer portal, too. At the conference level, this combination, plus the arrival of the Texas Longhorns, means the title race just got that much tighter. At the NCAA level, Florida will now certainly be trying to defend their third-place finish from 2024 instead of being able to get involved with the fight for the title.
Chaney last raced at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Indianapolis, where he won the double swim-off between himself and Jonny Kulow for a spot in the final of the men's 50 freestyle, where he finished eighth.
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