UA swimmer Ty Wells passes away at age 23

© Arizona Athletics

A member of Arizona’s men’s swim team has unexpectedly passed away.

23-year-old Ty Wells died earlier this week. No cause of death was given.

Wells was in his fifth year with the program, specializing in the breaststroke for the Wildcats. During the 2022 Pac-12 Championships he set personal bests in the 50-, 100- and 200-meter breast, and last June competed in the USA Olympic Team Trials in Omaha for the 2022 Tokyo Games.

His most recent meet was the Toyota US Open Championships Nov. 30-Dec. 3 in Charlotte, where he competed in the 100- and 200 breast.

A native of California, Wells graduated from Ripon High School in 2018 where he was a 4-time letterwinner in both swimming and water polo. He picked Arizona over Cal Baptist, Indiana, Pacific and Utah.

According to his online bio, Wells received his degree in physiology last May and hoped to pursue a career in sports medicine or physical therapy. He was a CSCAA Scholar All-American in 2021-22.