Olympics, Swimming Broadcast Legend Rowdy Gaines to Retire After 2028 Games

"The Voice of Swimming" is calling it a career after one more Olympics.

Olympic gold medalist and professional commentator Rowdy Gaines looks on at a swimming event. / Photo by Mike Comer/NCAA Photos via Getty Images

The man considered as "the voice of swimming" is calling it a career after one final Olympic games.

On Thursday, three-time gold medalist and longtime Olympic commentator Rowdy Gaines announced the 2028 Los Angeles Games will be his final Olympic broadcast. Gaines announced the news via an Instagram post on Wednesday, sharing an amusing meme featuring the breakout star of the 2024 Olympics, Stephen Nedoroscik.

"I'm still here!," Gaines wrote on his Instagram. "Don't forget to watch Open Water swimming starting on 8/8-8/9 with the amazing Mary Carillo on @peacock ! And yes, @la28games will be my last, so please continue to support swimming with Worlds, NCAA, Nationals, and so so so much more! Cause after 2028, I'm riding off into the sunset of full time grandparent!"

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It's a devastating blow for passionate swimming fans and casual Olympics viewers alike. Gaines has long brought incredible energy to any broadcast he's part of, and his excitement is infectious through the screen. He possesses the rare broadcasting skill of making every single moment feel like it matters—an especially meaningful trait for swimming broadcasts, where most events are brief.

Retiring after the 2028 Games is a cool full-circle moment for the longtime broadcaster, too. Gaines won his three gold medals at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles. His Olympic career will begin and end in the City of Angels.

After medaling that year, Gaines would join NBC to cover swimming in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. He hasn't missed a summer of coverage since, commentating on swimming in Sydney, Athens, Beijing, London, Rio, Tokyo, and now Paris. He is a member of the International Swimming Hall of Fame as well as the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame.

Gaines' highlight reel as a commentator is lengthy and very entertaining. Few analysts on Olympics broadcasts have brought the level of energy Gaines brings to swimming. He will be missed.

But Gaines isn't done yet. With a few more events to go in Paris and a full set of Olympic games in four years, there's still plenty of time to enjoy the broadcasting legend.