Background
Benjamin Proud grew up in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and attended the Alice Smith School from kindergarten until year 12, when he left to pursue his swimming career further.
Benjamin Proud grew up in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and attended the Alice Smith School from kindergarten until year 12, when he left to pursue his swimming career further.
Beginning two years ago, Benjamin Proud became a student of Saint Mark & Saint John, Plymouth where he is currently studying for a Sports Development & Coaching degree.
He was the fastest 18-year-old in the world who competes in the 50m butterfly and is currently training for the 2016 Olympics in Rio. He competed for the school and was privately trained by Mr. Kiu, a professional Malaysian swimmer, as well as at school.
Although he lives in Plymouth where he attends university, his life is still very much based in Malaysia and he often vists his friends and family there.
After his initial victories, he rose through the ranks and broke the decade-long 50m Butterfly standing record twice, in the semis and final, giving him his first British Gas Swimming Championship title at the age of 19. He went on the break his personal best times for the 50m and 100m Freestyles, earning himself a silver and bronze, as well as a spot on the British team for the 2013 World Championships being held in Barcelona.
Unsurprisingly, Proud did incredibly, finishing 18th in the 50m Free, and 11th in the 50m Fly. British Record*.
Proud holds two British national records, as well as being the Commonwealth champion in the 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle events. Last season, Benjamin Proud won a silver medal in the 50m Butterfly -his strongest eventin the European Junior Championships, which put him on the map as the fastest British sprinter at the British Gas International Meet in 2013, winning a gold in the Fly, and going on later to win a silver in the 50m Free in Leeds. In 2014, still only 19 years old, Ben won his first senior international medals on his Commonwealth debut for England at Glasgow. The following month, Proud won a gold and a bronze in the 4x100m Medley Relay and the 50m Fly for Team Great Britain at his first European Championships.
