Daniel Wiffen facts for kids
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 14 July 2001 Leeds, England |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Ireland Northern Ireland |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Medal record
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Daniel Wiffen (born 14 July 2001) is an Irish swimmer who competes at the Olympic Games, world championships and European championships for Ireland and at the Commonwealth Games for Northern Ireland. He is the Olympic and world champion at 800 metres.
Wiffen won gold at the men's 800 metre freestyle final at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, setting an Olympic record time of 7:38.19. He won the 800 and 1500 metres freestyle at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships in Doha, the first time a male Irish swimmer had become world champion. He won the 400, 800 and 1500 metre freestyle at the 2023 European Swimming Championships (25m) in Otopeni, and the inaugural European Under-23 title in 2023 in Dublin.
Wiffen holds the 800 metres freestyle short-course world record with a time of 7:20.46.
Background
Wiffen was born in Leeds, England, and moved to Magheralin at the age of two. He has three siblings, twin brother Nathan, sister Elizabeth and another brother, Ben. The family home is close to the border of County Down but is in County Armagh. He became the 2023 European short-course (25-metre pool) champion over 400, 800 and 1500 metres freestyle, the first Irish swimmer to win European short-course gold. In the 2022 Commonwealth Games he won the silver medal for Northern Ireland in the 1500 metres freestyle.
He competed in the men's 800 metres freestyle and 1500 metres freestyle at the 2020 Summer Olympics. In December 2022 Wiffen broke the European record for the 800 metres freestyle short course, becoming the first Irishman to hold a European record in swimming. At the 2023 World Aquatics Championships he broke the European record for the 800 metres long course as well.
He also won the inaugural 2023 European under-23 championship over 1500 metres freestyle.
| Year | 400m | 800m | 1500m |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | — | 8th | 9th |
| 2023 | 4th | 4th | |
| 2024 | 7th |  |
|
2024 Summer Olympics
Wiffen qualified in the 400m, 800m and 1500m for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, but decided not to compete in the 400m and instead swim in the 10km Open water swimming. He would become Ireland's first Olympian in that discipline.
Wiffen qualified in first place for the 800m freestyle final and on 30 July, he won the gold medal in a new Olympic record time of 7:38.19. This was Ireland's twelfth Olympic gold and first in swimming since Atlanta in 1996. He was the second Irish swimming medalist at the 2024 games and the first individual Olympic Gold medal winner from Northern Ireland since 1972. On 4 August, Wiffen won the bronze medal in the 1500m freestyle final, with a time of 14:39.63.
| Year | 800m | 1500m | OW 10 k |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | |
 |
— |
Personal life
Daniel's twin brother Nathan is also a swimmer who finished fourth in the 1500m at the 2024 European Championships and narrowly missed out on the qualifying time for that event for the 2024 Olympics.
Daniel and his twin brother have a YouTube Channel. They both had minor roles in The Frankenstein Chronicles (season 1, episode 2) and Games of Thrones (season 3, episode 9); in the latter, their sister Elizabeth also appeared as Neyela Frey.
Wiffen attends Loughborough University.
Records
| Record | Event | Time | Meet | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | 800m Freestyle (SC) | 7.20.46 | European SC Championships | 10 December 2023 | Ireland |
| ER | 800m Freestyle | 7:38.19 | Olympics | 30 July 2024 | |
| OR | 800m Freestyle | 7:38.19 | Olympics | 30 July 2024 | |
| National Records LC | |||||
| NR | 400m Freestyle | 3:44.35 | Swim Open Stockholm | 13 April 2023 | Loughborough |
| NR ER OR | 800m Freestyle | 7:38.19 | Olympics | 30 July 2024 | Ireland |
| NR | 1500m Freestyle | 14:34.07 | World Championships | 18 February 2024 | |
| National Records SC | |||||
| NR | 400m Freestyle | 3:35.47 | European SC Championships | 5 December 2023 | Ireland |
| WR NR | 800m Freestyle | 7.20.46 | European SC Championships | 10 December 2023 | |
| NR | 1500m Freestyle | 14:09.11 | European SC Championships | 7 December 2023 | |
