Lukas Martens and Germany Have Promise Heading into World Championships
Since 2011, there have been 12 global championships conducted – four Olympic Games and eight World Championships. During that span, Germany has totaled 27 medals in the pool, including a high of six at the depleted 2024 edition of the World Champs. Those figures are hardly impressive.
But as the next World Championships in Singapore approach, Germany is on the verge of a strong showing. Whether it will produce its high-medal count since 2011 is uncertain, but at the least, Germany will field a squad that should log regular appearances in championship finals, which equates to contention for the podium.
The obvious anchor for the Germans is Lukas Martens, the reigning Olympic champion in the 400 freestyle. The 23-year-old has ridden the momentum of his Paris triumph to a stellar first half of 2025, a stretch highlighted by a world record of 3:39.96, the first sub-3:40 performance in history. Martens has medaled in the 400 freestyle at the last three World Champs, but he is still seeking his first title. Martens will also be a factor at Worlds in the 200 freestyle, where he owns a career-best mark of 1:44.14.
While Martens is the headliner, Germany is loaded with firepower in the distance-freestyle events, thanks to the presence of veteran Olympic medalist Florian Wellbrock and rising star Sven Schwarz, who earlier this year established a European record in the 800 freestyle of 7:38.12. Schwarz challenged that record over the weekend, winning the European U-23 crown in 7:38.98. Add in Oliver Klemet and Germany undoubtedly boasts the premier distance-freestyle contingent in the world.
In Isabel Gose and Angelina Kohler, the German women feature experienced talent. Gose secured bronze at the Olympics in Paris and was a three-time medalist at the 2024 World Champs. Her best chance of medaling in Singapore is the 1500 freestyle, which will have a deep field, but one not as stacked as the 400 free and 800 free.
As for Kohler, she should battle for the podium in the 50 butterfly and 100 fly. Although Gretchen Walsh is the undisputed favorite in both events, Kohler has been 56.11 in the 100 fly.
Anna Elendt, who packaged a superb college career at the University of Texas, will take on all three breaststroke events in Singapore, and seems best positioned to challenge for hardware in the 100 distance. More, Luca Armbruster (50 butterfly) and Lucas Matzerath (100 breaststroke) have been consistently solid.
We’ll know in a little more than a month whether Germany produces its best global championship outcome in a decade and a half. If nothing else, opportunity exists – and that scenario is a plus for a country clearly moving in the right direction.