BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – As announced by the Southeastern Conference office on Tuesday afternoon, Falemana Tuufui of Kentucky has picked up the SEC Male Freshman of the Week honor, his first on the season. This is the first SEC Freshman of the Week honor for the Wildcats since senior Ryan Merani back in January of 2023.
Tuufui, a native of Briey, France, has been in Kentucky for just under three months and is already making waves in and out of the pool. With three collegiate competitions under his belt, Tuufui has proved to be among the best in the country, with the 18th fastest 50 free time in the country so far.
This past week, Tuufui showed out against the nation’s No. 12 men’s team, Louisville, in the rivaled in-state matchup. Starting off the meet for the Cats, Tuufui was the anchor in the 200 medley relay, which included Lysander Osman, Esteban Nunez Del Prado, and Adomas Gatulis. As the anchor he swam an astonishing 18.54 split, setting a program record for the fastest 200 medley relay in program history.
He also swept the 50 and 100 free events, smashing another school record that had previously been set in 2020 by Peter Wetzler, in 19.25 seconds. He became the fastest Wildcat in school history with that 50 free swim and has seen incredible times this year in the blue and white, being a 2x program record holder in just his third collegiate meet.
Tuufui and the rest of the Wildcats will return to the pool for their mid-season matchup at Ohio State on Nov. 18-21 up in Columbus. The next home meet for Kentucky swim and dive will be after the new year, on Jan. 9 against Notre Dame.
For the latest on UK Swimming & Diving, follow @UKswimdive on Instagram, Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).
