Pieter Coetze Is Making Waves on the World Stage

Photo Credit: World Aquatics - Supplied

The Tuks swimming star has broken the 50m backstroke world record and is building momentum ahead of the next World Aquatics World Series stop.

Uzbekistan (12 October 2026) – South Africa’s Pieter Coetze is on a serious roll in the pool, and the world is taking notice! The Tuks swimming star has added another major milestone to his growing list of achievements, setting a new world record in the 50m backstroke at the World Aquatics World Series in Uzbekistan on Friday.

Coetze touched the wall in an incredible 22.09 seconds in the short-course event, bettering the previous world record and improving on his own African record of 22.51 seconds, set just a week earlier at the opening leg of the series in Azerbaijan.

And there could be more fireworks to come. The series moves to Kazakhstan on Thursday, where Coetze could have another opportunity to push the limits of what is possible in the pool. His rivalry with Russian swimmer Egor Kornev has become one of the competition’s biggest talking points, with Kornev also setting a world record when he won in Azerbaijan in 22.23 seconds.

With records falling so quickly, swimming fans will be watching closely to see whether the mark can be lowered again. Could we see the same world record improved three times in just three weeks?

The achievement is another sign of just how far he has come. He claimed the 100m backstroke world title in 2025 and came close to breaking the world record at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, clocking 51.7 seconds twice.

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His international medal collection is already impressive, with four medals at the World Championships, including one gold, two silver and a bronze. He has also claimed nine Commonwealth Games medals (four gold, two silver and three bronze ) as well as three medals at the World University Games.

Coetze has made no secret of his ambition to change that at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. After the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, he explained that while world records would be a welcome achievement, Olympic gold remained his biggest priority.

“It’s not number one on my list. Times are important; it’s definitely something I’m chasing. Obviously, I’d love to break a few world records, but at the end of the day, winning an Olympic gold medal at the 2028 Los Angeles Games matters more to me.”

Still, Friday’s record clearly made for a special moment. In a photo taken just after his swim, Coetze’s expression captures the joy and disbelief of realising what he had achieved.

“And then, like, a second later, I was like…’the World Record was 22.1.’ So… not many words to describe that. It’s crazy.”

The results speak for themselves. Across the first two World Series meets, Coetze has won five of the six finals he has contested. He has also improved the African record in the 100m backstroke twice, winning in 49.11 seconds in Azerbaijan before going even faster in Uzbekistan with 48.21 seconds.

And despite the records and medals piling up, Coetze knows the competition is never far behind. Speaking to World Aquatics after his record-breaking swim, he explained why staying focused is essential.

“My mindset normally stays the same, no matter what the race is, because, you know, at this level everyone is always close. I mean, the world-record holder was there and look how close it was. So, no, you can never get too comfortable. I’ll keep doing the same.”

With another World Series stop ahead and the 2028 Olympics firmly on his radar, Coetze is showing no signs of slowing down. The records are a bonus, and the medals keep coming.