James Gibson (swimmer)

James Daniel Gibson
MBE
Personal information
Full nameJames Daniel Gibson
National team Great Britain
BornChelmsford, England
Height1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight80 kg (176 lb; 12 st 8 lb)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesBreaststroke
College teamLoughborough University
Medal record
Men's swimming
Representing Great Britain
World Championships (LC)
Gold medal – first place 2003 Barcelona 50 m breaststroke
Bronze medal – third place 2003 Barcelona 100 m breaststroke
European Championships (LC)
Bronze medal – third place 2006 Budapest 4×100 m medley
European Championships (SC)
Gold medal – first place 2003 Dublin 100 m breaststroke
Silver medal – second place 2001 Antwerp 100 m breaststroke
Silver medal – second place 2001 Antwerp 4×50 m medley
Bronze medal – third place 2008 Rijeka 100 m breaststroke
Summer Universiade
Gold medal – first place 2003 Daegu 50 m breaststroke
Gold medal – first place 2003 Daegu 100 m breaststroke
Representing  England
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2002 Manchester 50 m breaststroke
Silver medal – second place 2006 Melbourne 100 m breaststroke
Bronze medal – third place 2002 Manchester 100 m breaststroke

James Daniel Gibson, MBE is an English former competitive swimmer and breaststroker who represented Great Britain in the Olympics, FINA world championships and European championships, and England in the Commonwealth Games. He is a former world, European and Commonwealth champion in the men's 50-metre breaststroke event, and now serves as the head swimming coach at the Energy Standard Swim Club.


Born in Chelmsford, Essex, and raised in Witham. He first started swimming at Witham Dolphins swimming club in Essex and is now the clubs lifelong president, Gibson's primary swimming stroke is the breaststroke and he competed in the 50-, 100- and 200-metre events. In 2003 he became world champion at 50 metres (long-course). He was 6th in the 100 metre event at the Athens Olympics in 2004. A year earlier, at the 2003 Summer Universiade, he won titles in both the 50- and 100-metre breaststroke.

In choosing three words to describe himself, Gibson has said, "confidence, positive and pecs",[1] referring to his prodigious pectoral muscles. On a 2003 edition of the sports-comedy quiz show They Think It's All Over he admitted to rippling his chest muscles before races in order to "freak out" the opposition.

He was appointed MBE in the 2004 New Year's Honours. Gibson's club was Loughborough University where he was coached by Ben Titley. He is now a coach himself at the Energy Standard Swim Club primarily training in Turkey.