Vladimir Morozov Announces Retirement: ‘We Need to Call it a Day’

Vladimir Morozov celebrates the 50m breaststroke title at the European Championships in Glasgow Photo Courtesy: Patrick B. Kraemer

Olympic medalist Vladimir Morozov is officially retired.

His plan had been to “swim at least to Paris,” however, “factors that I could not control intervened.”

Morozov detailed his retirement in an interview with Match TV.

Morozov was a short-course world champion in 2013 after winning a bronze medal in the 400 free relay in London for Russia.

He then competed for Russia again in 2016 in Rio, finishing fourth in the 400 free relay. In Tokyo in 2021, he finished 16th in the 50 freestyle (21.53).

Morozov broke a world record in the 100 IM at the FINA World Cup. He has 109 World Cup wins during his career, trailing just Chad le Clos in men’s competition.

His last competition was the 2021 World Short Course Championships before Russian swimmers were banned from international competition because of the Ukraine war that began in 2022. He could have continued swimming with neutral status with World Aquatics, but he opted not to.

“It’s a bit late,” Vladimir Morozov said. “And age has made it clear that everything is good, we need to call it a day. I really wanted to swim at least to Paris, although the results in 2020 and 2021 were average, far from the level at which I am used to performing. Well, then it was not just my decision—factors that I could not control intervened.

“There was no longer any opportunity to compete internationally. In my position, when you live in America, to fly to Russia and compete only at this level after three Olympics and so many world championships… It didn’t appeal to me at all.”

Morozov moved from Russia to California at age 14, then attended USC. In 2013, he won the NCAA titles in the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle before turning pro.

Now he coaches swimming and triathlons in Los Angeles.

“Today there is no sadness, no regret, when you have such a long career, when you have achieved a lot at the international level over these ten years,” Morozov said. “Over such a long career, anything can happen, and this is what happened. No regrets. The only thing, maybe, when I was 24-25 years old, it was worth going more to training camps in different countries, with different coaches – in Australia, Europe, to gain experience and knowledge. Now many leaders in world swimming are doing just that. I didn’t do that. I flew from Dave Salo to Viktor Borisovich Avdienko, and the maximum knowledge I took from them was my maximum. It was necessary to expand my knowledge in swimming. I should have taken more consultations from different coaches, except that I regret it a little.”

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