In the eyes of Bingham head coach Clint Sorensen, the last two years of competition for senior Lincoln Hymas on his school’s swim team have been just as memorable—if not somewhat different from most kids Sorensen said he comes across. 

“Lincoln is driven to win,” Sorensen said. “He has a fierce competitive spirit and puts the work in to be successful.”   

This fight was apparent during his junior year at those 6A state swimming championships in 2024. Hymas glided into the wall in first place in the preliminary event. And yet Hymas finished only .23 seconds ahead of his closest competitor, Skyridge’s Mason
Hemmert. 

Then came the final of the 200 free. 

Hymas and Hemmert dueled like Ricky Bobby and Cal Naughton Jr. in the pool, moving back and forth over the 10 laps at the BYU Natatorium into the first-place position. After several lead changes, Hemmert and Hymas touched the wall within a second of each other for the second time in as
many days. 

In swimming, results often happen within hundredths of a second. 

That’s what occurred here, as Hemmert touched the wall one-second-and-six-hundredths of a second earlier than Hymas—who had to settle for the silver medal in last year’s 200 free at state. 

Determined not to let that happen again, Hymas glided into the wall in the 200 freestyle prelims a full four seconds ahead of his closest competitor, Nate Moir of Skyridge. 

Would a Skyridge swimmer ruin Hymas’ moment once again? 

Moir was even with Hymas for most of the 500 free, and yet the Bingham swimmer launched his body towards the wall .23 seconds earlier than his Skyridge opponent. This was Hymas’ first gold medal at a state championship race—he finished fifth and sixth in the same two races in 2023’s state competition as a sophomore. 

What’s more is that as a junior, Hymas started his 2024 6A state run winning a preliminary event by just .23 seconds and he finished it the same.

In 2025, Hymas was a young man possessed. The Bingham senior won everything in sight, including a Region title. He then captured his 2025 state preliminary in the 200 freestyle race by more than one second over his nearest competitor from American Fork, Sam Petersen. 

In the 200 free state final at the BYU Natatorium, the senior Hymas pushed past Petersen, a sophomore, with ease and won by more than two seconds—1:41:46 to 1:43.84—his first state title in the event. 

Now came the next debate: would Hymas repeat his state championship in the 500 freestyle race? American Fork was muscling in on everyone in nearly every boys’ race, reclaiming their spot as the top team in 6A. 

This was an individual race—one that Hymas was obviously taking a lot more personally than last year as he made no mistake as to who won the 200 free. 

Winning any race by more than two seconds in the sport of swimming is considered a blowout victory—particularly when the event is being contested in shorter lengths of the pool. 

For Hymas, who is ranked No. 18 by Utah Swimming and a respectable 393rd nationally in the 500 free, another individual trophy would add to the dozens he’s won at four different clubs throughout his seven-year competitive swimming career.  

This race was his best one. 

Again it would be American Fork’s Petersen, the Hilltop Aquatic Team’s sixth best swimmer, facing off against Hymas—not listed among Utah Valley Aquatics’
top 25. 

Would that slight factor in? 

Hard to say, but Hymas literally blew the doors off the BYU Natatorium, increasing his lead so much with each of his 10 laps in the preliminary race that the Bingham swimmer finally touched the wall in 4:40.47. 

Petersen followed Hymas six
seconds later.  

With a shot at another state individual title in the 500 free on the line, Hymas took his place and tucked into position. 

Four minutes and 37 seconds after leaping into the pool, Hymas emerged from the water as a back-to-back state champion in the 500. In the eyes of assistant coach Aubrie Johnson, Hymas was one of a kind. 

“Lincoln has been an incredibly dedicated athlete that set high goals for himself... and showed everyone that he was willing to work hard to reach all
of them.”  λ