Ben Armbruster (swimming) made his Commonwealth Games debut in Birmingham where he reached the final of the men’s 50m backstroke.

After taking up swimming aged 4, Ben was spotted early in his career, but the lack of local options often meant travelling around Australia to compete in junior events. Ben grew up in Stanthorpe in Queensland’s Southern Downs where the pool is only open six months a year and it wasn’t until he made the state squad that he started training year round, which meant a 100km round trip to Warwick. He relocated to the University of the Sunshine Coast in late 2020 – leaving behind his coach of 14 years Gail Small – then followed Chris Mooney to Bond University on the Gold Coast in 2021 where he is studying for a Bachelor of Sport Management.