2025 World Junior Swimming Championships
- August 19-24, 2025
- Otopeni, Romania
- LCM (50 meters)
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BOYS’ 200 BACKSTROKE – FINALS
- World Record: 1:51.92 – Aaron Peirsol, USA (2009)
- World Junior Record: 1:55.14 – Kliment Kolesnikov, RUS (2017)
- Championship Record: 1:56.05 – Pieter Coetze, RSA (2022)
Top 8:
- John Shortt (IRL) – 1:56.19
- Daniele del Signore (ITA) – 1:57.99
- David Melnychuk (USA) – 1:58.13
- Matteo Venini (ITA) – 1:58.49
- Aukan Goldin (ISR) – 1:58.64
- Gavin Keogh (USA) – 1:58.71
- Anton Denysenko (UKR) – 2:00.45
- Francis Brennan (CAN) – 2:00.46
Day six of the 2025 World Junior Championships saw Ireland’s John Shortt clock a new national record time of 1:56.19 en route to grabbing gold in the 200 backstroke.
Racing in lane four, 18-year-old Shortt grabbed the lead from the gun and never relinquished it. He held the lead by six hundredths through the first 50m and continued to build his margin from there. Shortt ultimately won the race by 1.80 seconds over Italy’s Daniele del Signore (1:57.99), with Team USA’s David Melnychuk (1:58.13) taking bronze.
Shortt’s outing this evening overtook his previous national record of 1:56.61, which he posted to win the Irish Open in April.
Splits between the two performances demonstrate how the Galway native upped the ante on the final 50m, beating his previous record’s split by 32 hundredths.
Splits Comparison:
| Shortt’s Old National Record | Shortt’s New National Record |
| 27.78 | 27.65 |
| 29.34 (57.12) | 29.38 (57.03) |
| 29.64 (1:26.76) | 29.63 (1:26.66) |
| 29.85 (1:56.61) | 29.53 (1:56.19) |
Reflecting on his record-breaking performance and long season, Shortt said, “It’s been a long season, but to end on such a high with a big personal best—gosh, I couldn’t be happier. Having my family, my coaches, my teammates here… it’s just been amazing, and I’ve loved every bit of it.”
On the importance of World Junior Championships experience for upcoming major meets, he stated, “I mean, it’s everything. Because, you know, once you get to those really big finals—like Worlds or the Olympics—you need to be able to draw from these experiences and know that you can perform under pressure. After a really good swim this morning, I knew I’d put myself in a position where I could do something really special tonight, and that’s what happened.”
The National Centre Limerick swimmer has had a massive week in Otopeni. He has already collected bronze in the 50 back (25.06) and won the gold medal in the 100 back (53.86). His 50 back represents a new best time, while he posted 53.80 in the semifinals of the 100 back to undercut his previous best of 53.90. He entered the meet with a 25.46 50 back time.
Last month, Shortt lined up at the senior World Championships, where he touched 26th in the 100 back (54.26) and 15th in the 200 back (1:57.30). He also helped Ireland to 14th in the 4×200 free relay and 21st in the 4×100 medley relay.
He finished 24th in the 200 back at the 2024 Doha World Championships, logging a time of 1:58.47. He also swam the event at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, where he hit the wall in 1:59.79 for 22nd place.
He’s been a mainstay on the European junior scene for some time, having won the 200 back (1:57.68) and earned silver in the 100 back (54.74) last year. Last month, he upgraded to gold in the 100 back (54.09) but fell to bronze in the 200 back (1:58.45).
