Olympic champion Tatjana Smith to return from retirement with LA 2028 target

Tatjana Smith has announced she is coming out of retirement to aim for the 2028 Los Angeles Games, the decision disclosed on 22 September 2026.

The 29-year-old is South Africa's most decorated Olympian and won two gold and two silver medals at the Paris and Tokyo Olympic Games. She initially retired from swimming after the 2024 Olympics and is the former 200m breaststroke world record holder.

Smith won 100m breaststroke gold and 200m silver at the Paris 2024 Games, and previously took 200m breaststroke gold and 100m silver at Tokyo 2020.

She has said she is aiming to compete over the new Olympic distance of 50m, describing it as a fresh challenge and a different race.

Smith said she was "missing the water", adding her return "feels a little crazy, a little scary and very exciting all at once".

On the change of focus she said: "It's definitely a new challenge, a new event, a new race, but also a new me. For the first time, I am choosing swimming and I am choosing the event and I am choosing a new event, that has no history but to try and write some new history."

Smith set Los Angeles 2028 as her objective, saying: "LA 2028 is the goal. It is not a promise. I still have to build a race, qualify and earn my place back on those blocks."