LUKAS MÄRTENS

NATIONALITY German
HOMETOWN Magdeburg
DATE OF BIRTH 27/12/2001
DISCIPLINE 200m, 400m, 800m, 1500m Freestyle
CLUB/COLLEGE SC Magdeburg
COACH Bernd Berkhahn
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BIOGRAPHY

For Lukas Märtens, training alongside Florian Wellbrock every day provides competition and education that has been a key factor in his ascent on to the world stage. Lukas is part of Bernd Berkhahn’s group in Magdeburg along with Wellbrock, his wife Sarah and Isabel Gose.

He made a huge impact in 2022 across all events from 200m freestyle through to the 1500m and ended the year with three medals at the World and European Championships including 400m freestyle gold at Rome 2022. Lukas absorbs lessons on a daily basis from working with and observing Wellbrock, the Olympic open water champion.

He told FINA: “I think Florian is a little bit cooler than me during the race and he has a lot of tactics that I can learn a lot from. He swims so fast in training and I want to win against him but it’s not that easy, but sometimes it happens. It’s really good - it’s like a perfect group for all of us.”

He won bronze in the 400m freestyle at both the 2023 and 2024 World Championships.

At the 2024 German Championships in Berlin in April, he almost broke Paul Biedermann’s world record (3:40.07) from 2009 with 3:40.33 minutes over his favourite distance, the 400m freestyle.

GENERAL QUICK FACTS

Favorite sportsperson or team (other than swimming)
German football team 1.FC Magdeburg
Favorite vacation spot and why
Warnemünde, a German port town on the Baltic Sea. The Beach is really nice and the sun shines the whole time
Public person you admire
Paul Biedermann, whose 200 and 400m freestyle world records from 2009 still stand today
Favorite book(s)/author(s)
Andrzej Sapkowski, Polish author of ‘The Witcher’ series
Favorite artist or work of art
Sports photographer Jo Kleindl
Items you’d want on a desert island
My girlfriend, Coca-Cola, perfume
If you could be any character in fiction, who would you be?
Geralt of Rivia, a fictional character from ‘The Witcher’ series who possesses supernatural abilities
If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?
The ability to fly
If someone wrote a biography about you, what do you think the title should be?
‘Lukas Märtens - The Boy Who Never Left His Hometown’
What you’d like to do in your life after swimming
Join the police

SWIMMING QUICK FACTS

Proudest moment in swimming
Becoming European champion in the 400m freestyle directly after my friend Isabel Gose won the women’s title at Rome 2022
Least favorite part of swimming
Not reaching an Olympic final at Tokyo 2020
Funniest moment in swimming
The 2019 German youth team championships (DMSJ)
Favorite/least favorite training set and why
Pull sets with bands
Favorite Race/Training suits and why
Carbon Air 2
Best piece of equipment and why
Fins
Favorite Food after training
Lasagne
Most annoying type of swimmer
Swimmers who swim fast in easy sets and slow in fast sets
Favorite Pool in the world and why
Stockholm, Sweden

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

2024 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, DOHA
BRONZE 400m Freestyle
2023 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, FUKUOKA
BRONZE 400m Freestyle
2022 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, BUDAPEST
SILVER 400m Freestyle
2022 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS, ROME
GOLD 400m Freestyle
SILVER 800m Freestyle

INSIDE LUKAS’ BAG

Powerfin Pro II
Powerskin Carbon-Air² Jammer
Cobra Original Swipe Goggles
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