Seth Stubblefield (born July 21, 1993) is an American retired competitive swimmer who specialized in sprint freestyle and butterfly.[1] He is a gold medalist in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay from the 2015 World University Games in Gwangju.[2]
Stubblefield was the 2010 Junior National champion in both the 100 and 200-meter butterfly, which qualified him for the 2010 Junior Pan Pacific Championships in Maui, Hawaii. At Junior Pan Pacs, Stubblefield earned a silver medal in the 200-meter butterfly and a gold medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay.[3][4]
Swimming as a sophomore for Plano Senior High School at the 2009 5A Texas State Championships, Stubblefield won the 4×50 and the 4×100 y freestyle relays.[5] As a junior at the 2010 State Championships, he won the 4×100 freestyle relay and was runner-up in the 50 y freestyle and the 100 y butterfly. In the 4×50 y medley relay, Stubblefield teamed up with high school and club teammate Will Licon to earn a bronze medal.[6] In his senior year, he elected to forego his last year of high school eligibility. He still currently holds the Plano Senior High School records in the 200-yard freestyle relay, 200-yard medley relay, and the 400-yard freestyle relay.[7]
Stubblefield competed for the California Golden Bears from 2011 to 2015 where he was a 3-time NCAA champion, 5-time NCAA runner-up, 2-time NCAA team champion (2012 & 2014), 16-time All-American, and a 5-time honorable mention All-American.[8][9][10][11] He also formerly held the American record in the 4×100 medley relay from the 2015 NCAA Championships.[12]
At the 2014 Phillips 66 Summer National Championships, Stubblefield swam the 50 and 100-meter freestyles as well as the 100-meter butterfly. Stubblefield's times in the 50 and 100 freestyles qualified himself for the 2015 World University Games in Gwangju, where he won a gold medal in the 4 × 100 m freestyle relay.
At the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials, Stubblefield entered the 100-meter butterfly final as the top-seeded swimmer, ahead of the likes of Michael Phelps and Tom Shields.[13] In a tightly contested race, Stubblefield touched third behind Phelps and Shields, missing out on an Olympic berth by 4-hundredths of a second.[14][15]
Seth is married to former University of Georgia All-American swimmer Lauren (Harrington) Stubblefield, and they have a son together named Judah. Seth is the son of Scott and Patti Stubblefield and has a younger sister, Alyssa.
| Short course yards | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event | Time | Meet | Date | Note(s) |
| 50 y freestyle | 18.97 | 2014 NCAA Championships | March 27, 2014 | |
| 100 y butterfly | 45.84 | 2015 Pac-12 Conference Championships | March 6, 2015 | |
| 100 y freestyle | 42.31 | 2014 NCAA Championships | March 29, 2014 | |
| Long course | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event | Time | Meet | Date | Note(s) |
| 50 m butterfly | 24.36 | 2017 Phillips 66 Summer National Championships | June 28, 2017 | |
| 50 m freestyle | 22.15 | 2014 Phillips 66 Summer National Championships | August 10, 2014 | |
| 100 m butterfly | 51.24 | 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials | July 1, 2016 | |
| 100 m freestyle | 49.09 | 2014 Phillips 66 Summer National Championships | August 6, 2014 | |
