Katie Ledecky and Luca Urlando were honored with Athlete of the Year awards at the 2025 USA Swimming Golden Goggle Awards. This year’s ceremony honored USA Swimming’s accomplishments at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore this past summer.
Ledecky won Female Athlete of the Year after setting a championship record to claim her seventh world title in the 800m freestyle, becoming the sole swimmer in history to win seven consecutive titles at worlds.
She also claimed her sixth world title in the 1500m freestyle, along with a silver in the women’s 4x200m freestyle relay and a bronze in the 400m freestyle. It was Ledecky’s 10th Golden Goggle in the category.
Urlando won Male Athlete of the Year following his gold-medal swim in the 200m butterfly. He is the second American after Michael Phelps to post a time of 1:51 in the race. Urlando, who made a comeback to the sport following shoulder surgery in 2022, was the only male swimmer from the U.S. to claim a title in an individual race at worlds.
Todd DeSorbo, head coach for the University of Virginia’s men’s and women’s swim team, won Coach of the Year for the second year in a row. Out of the 21 medals won by U.S. women at 2025 Worlds, nine were earned by current or former University of Virginia swimmers that he coached.
Ivan Puskovitch took home the Fran Crippen Open Water Athlete of the Year award following his seventh-place finish in the 3K Knockout Sprint at worlds. The event, which requires swimmers to swim three races without warming down, debuted at worlds for the first time in July. Puskovitch was the highest placing American in the open-water races.
Regan Smith, Kate Douglass, Gretchen Walsh, and Torri Huske won Relay of the Year after winning gold in the women’s 4x100m relay with a world-record time of 3:49.34. Katharine Berkoff, Lilly King, Claire Curzan, and Simone Manuel swam in the preliminary races.
Elizabeth Beisel was awarded Alumni of the Year for her ongoing work supporting swimmers across the country as an ambassador and member of the USA Swimming Foundation Board of Directors. Beisel previously swam for the University of Florida, securing silver in the 400m IM and bronze in the 200m backstroke at the 2012 London Olympic Games.
David and Maya Shackley were awarded the Foundation Impact Award for their lasting impact on the U.S. swimming community. For the past four years, David served as the USA Swimming Foundation Board Chair supporting Olympic Trials and initiating record-setting support for Adult Learn-to-Swim funding through an expanded partnership with U.S. Masters Swimming. The Shackleys also have mentored several U.S. swimmers such as Puskovitch , Bobby Finke, Leah Smith, and Brennan Gravley through the Donor-Athlete Partnership Program.
