Teenager Dillon Mezey Is All Over The American Record Books After A Dazzling Performance At Nationals

Dillon Mezey thought he had a chance to break a pair of American records at the 2026 U.S. Paralympics Swimming National Championships. 

But why stop there? 

As soon as Mezey shattered one record at nationals — held June 12-14 in Bosie, Idaho — he wanted to know how far away he was from setting a record in his next two events after that. The high school freshman from Colorado Springs, Colorado, gained confidence as the meet progressed and believed he could keep up his record-breaking pace. 

“I knew I was close to at least two of the records, so I kind of went into it hoping to just break those two,” said Mezey, who turned 14 on May 14. “And then the rest followed.” 

Mezey got off to a fast start in Boise, breaking the American record in the men’s 50-meter butterfly S3 race by more than 40 seconds when he posted a time of 1 minute, 2.02 seconds. He then set another American record in the 50 freestyle by touching the wall in 54.72 seconds. 

By the end of the weekend, Mezey had added his name all over the U.S. record books. He set American records at nationals in the 50 butterfly, 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle, 200 freestyle and 150 individual medley. 

“I was definitely surprised,” Mezey said of breaking his first American record. “And it kind of did give me like a sense of ‘Oh, I can get further in this and break more records and do more in the sport.’” 

Kristin Mezey, Dillon’s mother, said she felt a sense of pride as she sat in the Idaho Central Aquatic Center and watched as her teenage son enjoyed a breakout performance in the pool.  

Dillon was born a congenital amputee with no legs, a right arm that stops at the elbow and three fingers on his left hand. He usually competes against able-bodied swimmers, but he showed at nationals that he’s a promising Para swimmer on the international stage. 

Dillon said he hopes to someday qualify for the Paralympics, perhaps as soon as the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Games when he’ll be 16 years old. His lofty goals don’t end there, though. He’d like to see how far he can go in swimming and ultimately win a gold medal in the sport. 

Coincidentally, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee is based in Dillon’s hometown of Colorado Springs. 

“I’m proud of his hard work and his commitment and just blessed and thankful because he’s a great kid and he knows what his goals are and what he’s excited about,” Kristin said. “And it’s just really fun to see him meet some of those.” 

Kristin competed as a swimmer in high school, and she later put all four of her children in the pool at a young age. Dillon said the freedom he felt while gliding through the water and out of his wheelchair instantly hooked him. 

“I think I instilled the love of swimming for sure,” Kristin said. “I don’t think I was as good of a swimmer as he is.” 

Dillon started taking swimming lessons when he was around 3-4 years old, and he began racing for the Falfins swim team in Colorado Springs at age 7. He often swam at least four-five days a week as a kid. 

“I loved it the second I got in the pool,” Dillon said. “I loved it.” 

Once he started racing, Mezey said he wanted to reach the level where he could someday compete for a spot on the U.S. Paralympics Swimming national team. He took part in swim events with the Challenged Athletes Foundation in San Diego, which is where he met five-time Paralympian Rudy Garcia-Tolson. 

Garcia-Tolson, who’s also from Colorado Springs, won Paralympic medals in swimming, including two golds. He was outgoing and interacted with the young swimmers in San Diego, and Dillon started looking up to him. 

Garcia-Tolson was born with multiple birth defects, including a club foot and webbed fingers. Dillon, meanwhile, said he has had no trouble swimming with his birth defects. 

“It’s kind of just been a little bit of a second nature,” Dillon said. “It’s not too hard from the start and just got faster over time at it.” 

In addition to swimming, Dillon has recently started playing sled hockey. Though some athletes compete in both the Summer and Winter Paralympics, Dillion plans to prioritize breaking records in the pool.   

“That would be really cool to compete in both,” he said, “but the focus is definitely swimming.” 

Alex Abrams has written about Olympic sports for more than 15 years, including as a reporter for major newspapers in Florida, Arkansas and Oklahoma. He is a freelance contributor to TeamUSA.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.