Isaac Cooper, a 22-year-old gold medal-winning swimmer from Australia, has voluntarily withdrawn from the Australian swimming team’s athlete leadership group following his absence from the final night of competition at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
Cooper was not present for the concluding swim meet events at Tollcross International Swimming Centre or the subsequent team wrap-up meeting. According to reports, he was instead seen drinking in Glasgow while his teammates competed. Swimming Australia issued a statement confirming that Cooper’s absence conflicted with team expectations and that he had chosen to step down from the leadership position.
The incident concluded what had otherwise been a successful Games for Australian swimming, which achieved a record 37 gold medals. Cooper is one of Australia’s most prominent swimmers, having won gold in the 50m at the 2024 World Championships in Doha and competed at two Olympics. During the Glasgow Games, he received a gold medal as part of the 4×100 medley relay team, finished sixth in the 50m backstroke final, and withdrew from his 100m backstroke final after qualifying eighth. He had also been selected to promote the Commonwealth Games, including participating in the King’s Baton Relay at the Great Barrier Reef.
Cooper’s current sanction marks a recurrence of disciplinary issues in his career. Four years prior, he was sent home from a swim camp ahead of the 2022 Commonwealth Games due to what officials described as wellbeing challenges, including medication use. That incident prevented him from competing in Birmingham.
Swimming Australia indicated that Cooper remains eligible to represent the country at the Pan Pacific Championships in California later this month, stating the organization looks forward to watching him compete in that event.
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