Men's Swimming & Diving Announces Incoming Class

Photo by: Columbia University Athletics / Stockton Photo, Inc.

Men's Swimming & Diving Announces Incoming Class

8/16/2024 12:00:00 PM | Men's Swimming and Diving

2024-25 Roster

10 newcomers set to join Lions

NEW YORK — The men's swimming & diving program and Head Coach Jim Bolster have officially announced the addition of 10 newcomers who will be joining the program for the upcoming 2024-25 season.

The entire incoming class can be found below. The full 2024-25 men's swimming & diving roster can be found HERE.

David Sacca is a transfer from Carnegie Mellon University, joining the Lions to begin his sophomore season. The breaststroke and individual medley specialist from New York City's best performance in his first collegiate season came at the Western Pennsylvania Invite, where he placed second in the 200-breast with a career-best time of 2:08.78. At Trinity High School, Sacca was part of the team that holds the New York 200-medley relay record. He was the captain of his team that won Ivy League Championships and NYSAIS championships all four years.

Ryan Makouar is a butterfly, IM, and freestyle swimmer from La Cañada Flintridge, California out of La Cañada High School. While there, he placed second in the state of California in the 200-fly 18 and under division. Makouar was also a part of the Rose Bowl Aquatics Junior National Championship Team's second place run. He was named a USA All-American and NISCA All-American in the process, and won the Rob Lopez Coach award. Out of the pool, Makouar was an AP Scholar, has a seal of bi-literacy in French, and was a member of CSF and SNHS.

Gian Santos is an IM and freestyle swimmer from Rancho Santa Margarita, California out of Tesero High School. While there, he was named the Most Valuable Swimmer of his team both his junior and senior seasons, and was a CIF finalist twice in the 200-free and 500-free. He also holds his school record in the 400-free relay. Out of the pool, Santos was his class valedictorian and was an AP scholar. He also swims for the Philippines, and is a two-time qualifier for the World Junior Championships in Peru (2022) and Israel (2023).

Stephen Zhukov is an IM and freestyle swimmer from Knoxville, Tennessee out of Oak Ridge High School. While there, he was a 2023 Winter Junior Nationals Finalist, was named First Team All-State three times, and finished in the top-three at states three times. Zhukov also golds three Oak Ridge records. Out of the pool, he was a Scholastic All-America, was an AP Scholar with distinction, was a member of the National Honor Society, and Scholastic All-American, and has a seal of bi-literacy in French and Russian.

Lucas Zhang is a sprinter from Toronto, Ontario out of St. Michael's College School. While there, he was named varsity swimming MVP in 2021-22 and 2023-24. Out of the pool, Zhang was a member of the academic honor roll all four years, and was the school champion and won a medal of distinction in the Fermat Math Contest.

Will Cooley is a diver from Durham, North Carolina out of Durham Academy. While there, he placed 16th in the country on the platform dive at Junior Nationals with a score of 432.70. Cooley was also a Durham Academy badminton champion. Out of the pool, he was an AP Scholar and had high honors three years and honors one year.

Alex Binder is an IM and breaststroke swimmer from Los Angeles, California out of Loyola High School of Los Angeles. While there, he was a three-time All-American and three-time Scholastic All-American. Binder is a school record holder and former California record holder in the 200-medley relay, and was a 2022 sectional champion in the 100-breast. Out of the pool, he was the 2023-24 Loyola Scholar Athlete of the Year and was an AP Scholar with distinction. He also passed three levels of the Japanese National Kanji Aptitude Test, is a published author for scholarly research on Japanese Folklore, and won the Jesuit School Networks Award.

Bryce Key is a distance freestyle swimmer from Mansfield, Texas out of the Oakridge School. While there, he set three Oakridge and conference records, with a personal best 15:25.54 in the 1650-free. Out of the pool, Key was a Scholastic All-American, a National Merit Finalist, and his class Valedictorian.

Jerry Yan is a butterfly, backstroke, and freestyle swimmer from Rancho Santa Margarita, California out of Santa Margarita Catholic High School. He qualified for the state meet in both the 100-fly and 100-back, helping lead the team to a State Championship. Yan was an All-American swimmer, and a Scholastic All-American out of the pool.

Holden Carter is a butterfly and backstroke swimmer from North Liberty, Iowa from Liberty High School. While there, he was a four-time State Champion, and set multiple state records in various events in the process. Carter qualified for the US Open, and won a medal at junior nationals. Out of the pool, he was Summa Cum Laude, and received an honors diploma.

For the latest on the Columbia men's swimming and diving program, follow @CULionsMSD and @CULionsDiving on Instagram and Twitter, and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com