Eric Williams (swimmer)

Eric Williams
Personal information
Full nameEric Williams
National team Nigeria
Born (1977-11-27) 27 November 1977
Height1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight78 kg (172 lb)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesBreaststroke

Eric Williams (born 27 November 1977) is a Nigerian former swimmer who specialized in breaststroke events. He is an Olympian and a multiple-time Nigerian national record holder who represented his country across several major international competitions, including the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and African Games.[1]

Career

Early Career and Olympics

Williams made early international appearances for Nigeria at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester and the 2002 FINA Short Course World Championships in Moscow, where he set a national short-course record of 30.15 seconds in the 50-metre breaststroke. He made his long-course World Championship debut in 2003.

At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Williams competed only in the men's 100 m breaststroke, qualifying under a Universality place from FINA with an entry time of 1:09.60. [2] He swam a time of 1:07.69 to win the first heat against Zambia's Chisela Kanchela, Kenya's Amar Shah, and Nepal's Alice Shrestha. [3]However, he failed to advance to the semifinals, placing 53rd overall out of 60 swimmers during the preliminaries.[4][5] [6]

Later Career and National Records

Following the Olympics, Williams remained in Nigerian swimming. He competed at the 2005 World Aquatics Championships in Montreal, racing in the 50 m and 100 m breaststroke.

He established multiple national standards over the next decade. At the 2006 National Sports Festival in Nigeria, he set a national record in the 200 m breaststroke with a time of 2:33.13. The following year, at the 2007 All-Africa Games in Algiers, he set a national record in the 100 m breaststroke with a time of 1:06.83.

In 2011, he represented Nigeria at the 10th African Games in Maputo, Mozambique, where he contributed to another national record time of 3:59.66 in the men's 4x100 m medley relay.

Williams continued in domestic breaststroke events well into his mid-thirties. In July 2012, at the 4th Chief of Naval Staff Open Swimming Competition in Calabar, he won gold and set a new national record in the 50 m breaststroke with a time of 29.74 seconds, breaking his own previous record set in 2007. [7]

Personal bests

Williams holds several Nigerian national records (NR). His recorded personal best times include: [8]

  • 50m Breaststroke (Long Course): 29.74 sec (NR)
  • 100m Breaststroke (Long Course): 1:06.83 (NR)
  • 200m Breaststroke (Long Course): 2:33.13 (NR)
  • 50m Breaststroke (Short Course): 30.15 sec (NR)

References

  1. ↑ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Eric Williams". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  2. ↑ "Swimming – Men's 100m Breaststroke Startlist (Heat 1)". Athens 2004. Omega Timing. Retrieved 24 March 2013.
  3. ↑ "Swimming at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 metre breaststroke", Wikipedia, 7 July 2026, retrieved 15 July 2026
  4. ↑ "Men's 100m Breaststroke Heat 1". Athens 2004. BBC Sport. 14 August 2004. Retrieved 31 January 2013.
  5. ↑ Whitten, Phillip (14 August 2004). "Prelims, Men's 100 Breaststroke: Kitajima, Hansen Qualify One-Two; Japanese Sets Olympic Record". Swimming World Magazine. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 19 April 2013.
  6. ↑ "Eric Willaims Profile".
  7. ↑ Eyo, Charles. "Nigeria: Seven New Records Set At Chief of Naval Staff Open".
  8. ↑ "Eric WILLIAMS | Results | World Aquatics Official". World Aquatics. Retrieved 15 July 2026.


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