Millfield Commonwealth Games star delays opening A level grades as he hunts European Glory

Three weeks after making history as Jersey's first Commonwealth Games medallist in 36 years, Millfield swimmer Filip Nowacki has another major moment on the horizon, but it will have to wait. 

Instead of opening his A Level results today, the 18-year-old has chosen to delay finding out his grades while he focuses solely on competing for Great Britain at the European Aquatic Championships in Paris against the best in the world, including Adam Ramsay-Peaty again. 

The record-breaking teenager, widely regarded as one of the brightest young prospects in British swimming, is racing in the 50m, 100m and 200m breaststroke events. With competition still underway, Nowacki's full attention remains on the pool as he looks to round off a remarkable summer by adding a European title to his growing list of achievements. 

Getting his A Level results in Economics, Mathematics and Physics, will wait until tomorrow after the competition.  

Filip said: “As much as I want to know how I have done and hopefully celebrate with my friends, I don’t want to risk being distracted whilst in this major competition. I know I need to be fully focused so another 24 hours wait I can live with.” 

Filip is due to progress onto Loughborough University, as part of their Swimming Performance Centre.  

An early career highlight came for Filip in Glasgow this summer, where he became the first Commonwealth Games medallist for Jersey since 1990, after winning an incredible gold and silver medal in the 200m Breaststroke and 100m Breaststroke respectively. 

Filip joined Millfield for Sixth Form in 2024 from Jersey, where he began swimming aged four at Tigers Swimming Club. Since arriving at Millfield, he has continued his remarkable progression, training full-time as part of Millfield's high-performance swimming programme while representing Great Britain in international competitions.  

Filip said “Millfield are really good at helping you balance commitments, so I haven't had to drop any training sessions like a lot of my peers in club programmes. I've done eight sessions a week consistently throughout the exam period and not compromised my studies with the support of my teachers.” 

Despite wanting to join Millfield at a younger age, Filip eventually made the switch from Jersey to Somerset in 2024. He said “I've excelled since joining here. Everything on the campus is so close and the sports and academic programmes are incredibly well integrated through the teachers and coaching staff. The pool is only three hundred metres away from my boarding house, with my classes and the dining hall a couple minutes’ walk in the other direction. Apart from having wet hair in the classroom on a winter's morning, you really can’t complain! It's an amazing advantage having everything in one place.” 

Following a standout junior career that saw him claim multiple World Junior and European Junior titles, Filip enjoyed a breakthrough 2025 season. He was named Aquatics GB's Emerging Athlete of the Year after a series of record-breaking performances, including twice lowering the European Aquatics Junior Championships record in the 200m breaststroke before setting a new European Junior Record with a time that would have placed him fourth at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. 

He also claimed gold medals in the 100m and 200m breaststroke events, breaking Adam Ramsay-Peaty's British Junior Record in the 100m breaststroke, before adding further gold medals as part of Great Britain's 4x100m mixed medley relay and 4x100m men's relay teams at the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships. 

British swimming legend, Adam Ramsay-Peaty, describes Filip as “an incredible talent.”  

“He's got the speed, he's got the middle distance, and he's definitely got the endurance. I'm looking forward to seeing him over the next few years because he's got a very bright future ahead of him if he can keep his head in the right zone, which I'm sure he can”, said Ramsay-Peaty. 

Earlier this year, Filip made history as the first British swimmer to break the one-minute barrier across all four strokes, when he set a new personal best of 58.90 seconds in 100m backstroke at the AP Race London International. 

Filip will now depart Millfield to join Loughborough University, where he will study Economics and form part of their swimming squad. His eyes are now firmly set on representing Team GB at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. 

Reflecting on the Millfield swimming programme, Filip said: “Obviously the facilities are great here; how many schools have a 50-metre swimming pool? To train in that pool, knowing that it’s produced Olympic gold medallists, is so inspiring. It’s the coaches and environment, though, that make the programme really special. All the swimmers push each other to be better and help to keep you motivated in all your training sessions. Keiron Piper, the Head of Swimming, has been incredible; we've got through a lot of hard work over my two years at Millfield. He’s been a massive influence in my life and will be for the rest of my swimming career.”