All eyes are on the Commonwealth Games swimming schedule this week as Old Lathallian Dean Fearn takes to the pool to compete on the senior international stage.
Widely tipped as the “next big thing in Scottish swimming,” Dean has firmly established himself as a versatile sprint Butterfly and Backstroke specialist at both national and international levels.
Dean will swim in the 100m Butterfly (M) heats on Saturday 25th July around 11.20am and in the 50m Butterfly (M) heats on Tuesday 28th July at 10.50am.
This will be Dean’s debut Commonwealth Games team following a sensational string of performances over recent seasons. His impressive list of accolades includes two senior British titles, three European Junior gold medals, a European Junior bronze, and four medals at the World Junior Championships – where he was crowned champion in the 50m Butterfly.
Interestingly, Dean entered 2025 primarily focused as a backstroker, but ended the year securing his biggest results in butterfly, a dual-stroke versatility that makes him a formidable threat across multiple events.
Dean’s journey began swimming at school and through Aberdeen Dolphins under the expert tutelage of coach Laura Bowie, before finishing sixth year at Lathallan and relocating from Aberdeenshire to study and train at the University of Stirling.
Reflecting on his time at Lathallan, Dean said;
Representing Lathallan School in sport was where my journey really began. Those early opportunities helped develop my passion for sports and gave me the belief that one day I could take competing to a whole new level. School sport opened my eyes to a world of opportunities beyond the classroom. It gave me the confidence to dream bigger, embrace challenges, and ultimately set me on the path to achieving things I never thought were possible.”
At Stirling, Dean now trains alongside a host of Olympic, World, and European medallists, including Duncan Scott, Kathleen Dawson, Katie Shanahan, and Tom Dean.
While moving into a world-class environment brought some initial apprehension, it has pushed his professionalism to new heights. In a recent interview with The Herald, Dean said;
“On my first day, I walked in and everyone was lined up and it was just unreal how many big names were standing there. I grew up watching guys like Duncan Scott and Tom Dean. I’ve not really been around swimmers of this level before and so it’s quite something being in the same squad as them.
What’s so brilliant is that, in this squad, there’s always somebody who will push me to excel in every stroke I do and so training-wise, that’s great. It’s a real step-up in professionalism for me.”
Along with his technical growth, Dean has developed a remarkably mature approach to the high pressure of elite sport, learning to let his swimming do the talking rather than dwelling on target times or predictions:
“Going into 2024, I was talking too much about what I wanted to do and I had certain times and results in my mind… That year really taught me that I needed to go about things in a different way. I’m someone who doesn’t like to shout about things too much because I’ve learned lessons about that. I think the change of approach has really paid off, especially with winning the World Juniors.”
Dean is part of a talented contingent of five swimmers making the step up from Team Scotland’s most recent Commonwealth Youth Games squad to the senior stage.
Click here to see the daily schedule, and there’s an indication of timings for each event. Dean will swim in the 100m Butterfly (M) heats on Saturday 25th July around 11.20am and in the 50m Butterfly (M) heats on Tuesday 28th July at 10.50am.
“Everyone at Lathallan School is immensely proud of Dean’s incredible work ethic, humility, and extraordinary accomplishments. We will all be cheering him on as he represents Team Scotland!”
