2017 FINA WORLD SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Sunday, July 23rd – Sunday, July 30th
- Budapest, Hungary
- LCM (50m)
- Full Competition Schedule
- Meet Info
- Psych Sheets
- Omega Results
- Pick ’em Contest
- Event-by-Event Previews
Swimmers are gearing up for day 6 finals of the 2017 FINA World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. Tonight we’ll see finals of the women’s 100 free, men’s 200 back, women’s 200 breast, men’s 200 breast, and men’s 4×200 free relay. We’ll also see semifinals of the women’s 200 back, men’s 50 free, men’s 100 fly, and women’s 50 fly.
World Record holder Sarah Sjostrom (SWE) will aim to lower her 51.71 from the leadoff leg of the 400 free relay earlier in the meet, while Simone Manuel and Mallory Comerford will try and get 2 on the podium for Team USA. Sjostrom will return to the pool later in the session for semifinals of the 50 fly, another event in which she’s the World Record holder. Caeleb Dressel (USA) will also take on a double tonight, as he’s swimming both the 50 free semifinals and 100 fly semifinals. China’s Xu Jiayu, who became the first Chinese man to win 100 back gold at Worlds earlier in the meet, will battle with Olympic champ Ryan Murphy (USA) and Russia’s Evgeny Rylov in the 200 back final.
For a full preview of tonight’s events, click here.
WOMEN’S 100 FREE – FINAL
- World Record: Sarah Sjostrom, 51.71, 2017
- Championship Record: Sarah Sjostrom, 51.71, 2017
- Junior World Record: Penny Oleksiak, 52.70, 2016
- GOLD: Simone Manuel, USA, 52.27
- SILVER: Sarah Sjostrom, SWE, 52.31
- BRONZE: Pernille Blume, DEN, 52.69
In one of the most stacked races we’ll see this week, newly-minted world record holder Sasrah Sjostrom stormed out to the lead and was under the world record mark at the 50. Olympic gold medalist Simone Manuel started closing on Sjostrom over the second lap, and powered ahead in the final few strokes to touch out Sjostrom and take the gold medal in a new American Record time of 52.27.
Sjostrom finished in 52.31, exactly six-tenths off of the world record time she set leading off Sweden’s 4×100 free relay earlier this week. Denmark’s Pernille Blume was a few-tenths behind the two leaders, touching in 52.69. Mallory Comerford, who had set the American Record leading off the USA’s relay, was just off her best time with a 52.77 for 4th.
Ranomi Kromowidjojo, 2012 Olympic gold medalist, and Penny Oleksiak, who tied Manuel for gold last year, finished 5th and 6th, at 52.78 and 52.94 respectively. The two Aussies, Bronte Campbell (2015 world champion in this event) and Emma McKeon touched in 53.18 and 53.21 to round out the field.
MEN’S 200 BACK – FINAL
- World Record: Aaron Peirsol, 1:51.92, 2009
- Championship Record: Aaron Peirsol, 1:51.92, 2009
- Junior World Record:
Kliment Kolesnikov, 1:55.15, 2017
- GOLD: Evgeny Rylov, RUS, 1:53.61
- SILVER: Ryan Murphy, USA, 1:54.21
- BRONZE: Jacob Pebley, USA, 1:55.06
Evgeny Rylov looked like he was shot out of a rocket this evening. He turned first at the 50, with Xu Jiayu just behind him, but Rylov really separated from the field at the 100, turning in 54.50 with well over a second between him and the rest of the field. The pace didn’t look sustainable and Ryan Murphy began to close on Rylov the final 50. But the American ran out of room, and Rylov hung on to win in 1:53.61, shaving 2 tenths off the fastest time in the world this year. Murphy took 2nd in 1:54.21, with teammate Jacob Pebley surging in to grab 3rd in 1:55.06.
Another Russian, Kliment Kolesnikov, picked up 4th with a new Junior World Record (1:55.14), while Xu ended up 5th in 1:55.26. Peter Bernek, Ryosuke Irie, and Danas Rapsys placed 6th-8th.
WOMEN’S 200 BACK – SEMIFINALS
- World Record: Missy Franklin, 2:04.06, 2012
- Championship Record: Missy Franklin, 2:04.76, 2013
- Junior World Record:
Daria Ustinova, 2:07.29, 2015
TOP 8:
- Emily Seebohm, AUS, 2:05.81
- Kylie Masse, CAN, 2:05.97
- Kathleen Baker, USA, 2:06.66
- Daria Ustinova, RUS, 2:07.08
- Regan Smith, USA, 2:07.19
- Kaylee McKeown, AUS, 2:07.40
- Katinka Hosszu, HUN, 2:07.51
- Hilary Caldwell, CAN, 2:07.64
Katinka Hosszu led heat one until Regan Smith took over the lead in the second half of the race, but Daria Ustinova ran down both of them in the final meters. Smith’s 2:07.19 was good for a new Junior World Record. Australia’s Kaylee McKeown and Canada’s Hilary Caldwell were right there as well, as the top five in heat one touched within just over half a second of each other, from 2:07.08 to 2:07.64.
In the second heat, Kathleen Baker, Kylie Masse, and Emily Seebohm all went out together through the first 100, with Baker in the lead at the halfway point. Masse took over the lead on the third turn, but Seebohm ran her down the last half of the final lap. Baker touched in third behind them, with a wide separation between those three and the rest of the heat. With their times, Seebohm and Masse became the only two women to break 2:06 this year, setting up a great battle for tomorrow night.
MEN’S 50 FREE – SEMIFINALS
- World Record: Cesar Cielo, 20.91, 2009
- Championship Record: Cesar Cielo, 20.91, 2009
- Junior World Record: Yu Hexin, 22.00, 2014
TOP 8:
- Caeleb Dressel, USA, 21.29
- Vlad Morozov, RUS, 21.45
- (T-3) Bruno Fratus, BRA, 21.60
- (T-3) Ben Proud, GBR, 21.60
- (T-5) Kristian Gkolomeev, GRE, 21.71
- (T-5) Ari-Pekka Liukkonen, FIN, 21.71
- Pawel Juraszek, POL, 21.74
- Cesar Cielo, BRA, 21.77
Caeleb Dressel (USA) has been on fire all meet, and he set his 4th American Record of the meet while blazing a 21.29 to kick off the first heat. Vlad Morozov (RUS) was right behind Dressel, touching in 21.45, while Great Britain’s Ben Proud finished in 21.60. American Nathan Adrian finished 4th in the heat with a 21.8, putting him on the bubble as he awaited the results of the second heat.
The next heat was much more bunched up. Bruno Fratus touched first in 21.60, well off Dressel’s time, but the heat was faster overall, with five men finishing between 21.60 and 21.77 and qualifying for tomorrow night’s final. That left Adrian on the outside looking in by 3 hundredths.
WOMEN’S 200 BREAST – FINAL
- World Record: Rikke Pedersen, 2:19.11, 2013
- Championship Record: Rikke Pedersen, 2:19.11, 2013
- Junior World Record: Viktoria Gunes, 2:19.64, 2015
- GOLD: Yuliya Efimova, RUS, 2:19.64
- SILVER: Bethany Galat, USA, 2:21.77
- BRONZE: Shi Jinglin, CHN, 2:21.93
Russia’s Yuliya Efimova held a steady pace through the front half, waiting to make her move on the 3rd 50. She took off and built a sizeable lead over the field down the stretch, winning by 2 seconds in 2:19.64. With that, she was just half a second shy of the World Record.
The USA’s Bethany Galat (2:21.77) was in 7th at the 150-mark, but really turned it on in the last 50 meters to reach in and out-touch China’s Shi Jinglin (2:21.93) for silver. American 100 breast champ Lilly King had the early lead, but fell off the pace towards the end to finish just off the podium in 2:22.11. Canada’s Kierra Smith made a late charge to round out the top 5 in 2:22.23.
MEN’S 100 FLY – SEMIFINALS
- World Record: Michael Phelps, 49.82, 2009
- Championship Record: Michael Phelps, 49.82, 2009
- Junior World Record:
Kristof Milak, 51.23, 2017
TOP 8:
- Caeleb Dressel, USA, 50.07
- James Guy, GBR, 50.67
- Kristof Milak, HUN, 50.77
- Joseph Schooling, SIN, 50.78
- Mehdy Metella, FRA, 51.06
- Laszlo Cseh, HUN, 51.16
- Li Zhuhao, CHN, 51.29
- Grant Irvine, AUS, 51.31
Half an hour after breaking the American Record in the 50 free, Caeleb Dressel powered to another personal best with his 50.07 in the 100 fly, clipping his prelims time by a hundredth. James Guy (GBR) took 2nd in the heat behind him with a new British Record of 50.67, while Hungary’s Kristof Milak (50.77) took 3rd with a new Junior World Record in front of the home crowd.
Olympic champ Joseph Schooling was the winner of semifinal 1 in a season best time of 50.78. Defending World Champion Chad Le Clos (RSA) finished 7th in that heat with a 51.48. He finished 12th overall, so he won’t get a chance to defend his title in tomorrow night’s final.
WOMEN’S 50 FLY – SEMIFINALS
- World Record: Sarah Sjostrom, 24.43, 2014
- Championship Record: Sarah Sjostrom, 24.96, 2015
- Junior World Record: Rikako Ikee, 25.50, 2016
TOP 8:
- Sarah Sjostrom, SWE, 25.30
- Kelsi Worrell, USA, 25.57
- Melanie Henique, FRA, 25.63
- Penny Oleksiak, CAN, 25.66
- Ranomi Kromowidjojo, NED, 25.67
- Aliena Schmidtke,GER, 25.68
- Kimberly Buys, BEL, 25.70
- Farida Osman, EGY, 25.73
World Record holder Sarah Sjostrom dove in for her 2nd swim of the night. She cruised to top seed in 25.30, putting up the only 25-low of the semis. Kelsi Worrell turned in a personal best 25.57, just missing the American Record by 7 hundredths of a second.
Canada’s Penny Oleksiak (25.66) will get a shot at Rikako Ikee‘s Junior World Record in tomorrow night’s final, but the two junior stars won’t go head-to-head as Japan’s Ikee missed the final with a 25.90 for 13th. It took a 25.73 to make the top 8, with the 8th spot being occupied by Farida Osman in a new African Record.
MEN’S 200 BREAST – FINAL
- World Record: Ippei Watanabe, 2:06.67, 2016
- Championship Record:
Anton Chupkov, 2:07.14, 2017 - Junior World Record: Qin Haiyang, 2:08.71, 2017
- GOLD: Anton Chupkov, RUS, 2:06.96
- SILVER: Yasuhiro Koseki, JPN, 2:07.29
- BRONZE: Ippei Watanabe, JPN, 2:07.47
Japan’s World Record holder Ippei Watanabe set the pace through the front half, beating his own World Record pace by a tenth through the 100-mark. He fell off the pace on the back half, however, and Russia’s Anton Chupkov blew by him with a 31.99 on the final 50. Chupkov set a new Championship Record with his 2:06.96 and became the 2nd man in history to break 2:07.
Watanabe’s teammate Yasuhiro Koseki (2:07.47)ran him down on the back half, but the Japanese got 2 on the podium with Koseki taking silver and Watanabe taking bronze.
MEN’S 4×200 FREE RELAY – FINAL
- World Record: USA, 6:58.55, 2009
- Championship Record: USA, 6:58.55, 2009
- Junior World Record: USA, 7:13.76, 2015
- GOLD: GBR- 7:01.70
- SILVER: RUS- 7:02.68
- BRONZE: USA- 7:03.18
Russia and the USA traded the lead through the first 3 legs, with Townley Haas (1:44.58) and Jack Conger (1:45.37) putting up the fastest splits for the Americans. The USA had the lead heading into the final leg, but Great Britain’s James Guy blasted a 1:43.80 anchor split to give the Brits the gold, while Russia’s Alexander Krasnykh (1:44.80) moved them up into 2nd place. Zane Grothe (1:46.90) held on to help the Americans to bronze.
Quick comments
Russian day for that day 6
Women’s 100 free. Yesterday I wrote that it would be very close between Sjöström and Manuel and we were not disappointed. An individual final is well different than a relay. Sjöström looked tired in the last 25 meters and Simone Manuel took advantage of being next to her and took her wave. Simone is always clutch, she’s the olympic champion so I knew she had her chance. Congrats to her. Only thing that bothered me why her post-race reaction. No smile. It looked like she was last. I don’t understand she didn’t show any sign of joy. Weird. Blume in bronze shows she has made a big progression in that event. Mallory… Read more »
1,276 Comments !!! WR ?
Grothe made all his Finals, and earned his spot during prelims. I don’t understand the backlash against him. If team USA had a better performer, they would have used him. Dwyer and Smith worsened in Budapest leaving Grothe to step up again which he did. His time in prelims was identical to finals. I’ll say he delivered. The truth is Team ?? needs new 200 free guys.
Lauren…your page is lit. ??
Don’t dump on Grothe! If I’m not mistaken, his split in the final was faster than his split in the heats, so the coaches weren’t expecting any more from him than he gave them and the fans shouldn’t either! Dwyer took most of the year off from training; he is the Olympic bronze medalist and would have anchored the relay to a win if he had been in any kind of shape to do so. The US also has a lot of young talent coming through the pipes, we’ll just have to see if any of them can be ready to represent the US in 2019 and 2020.
1,256 Comments for this evening !!! SS Record i think is beaten
Team GB swam 3 seconds faster than in their gold in 2015. Duncan Scott swam a 1:44 and James Guy swam a 1:43.
They swam the race of their lives. The US best splits were a 1:44 and 1:45. So, GB were just better overall.
Happy to see Conger and Grothe get a WC medal.
“GB were just better overall”, very interesting observation to be honest. Thats what i thought too when i looked at the results.
How do you know that they “swam the race of their lives”, did they end their career afterwards or how do you know that they will never be faster?
I think there is an implied “to date” notion when MarkLewis says it was the race of their lives–rather than a suggestion that they will never be better.
Apologies if you are a Heptapod and do not interpret time linearly.
Sorry, why is it so difficult for most people to just say what they really mean, instead of relying on everyone else to interpret their comment in a certain way? Don’t understand, please explain. By just adding “so far”, he/she could have made his/her comment “waterproof”. The way his/her comment stands its just not right in my opinion, unless they indeed ended their careers or if he/she really has the ability to tell the future/time travel. In this case it might have been obvious what he/she tried to say, but the problem is that most misunderstandings are caused by people being too “lazy” to write what they really mean and instead just expect everyone else to get it right.
By the way: As far as i know heptapods dont really exist, so your last sentence is pointless, but i still take your apology.
I believe it is common practice to interpret something like “best race their lives” to mean compared to anything else past or present.
Interesting …
The term “best races of their lives” is also a bit weird to me. Are we talking about best races compared to their current level or best races time-wise? If its the first, then no one can actually say whether this was their best race, because no one saw all the races they ever did. If its the second one, then its also a bit strange to say something like that, because we cant know to what “flat-start” times those relay splits would convert, so its hard to compare those times to “flat-start” times, which would be necessary to really say whether this was their best (fastest) race ever.
Some observations:
1.) Simone Manuel is a hella racer. Stating the obvious, I know, but that was a very, very good swim. Fast, for sure, but smart, too. She hung on to Sarah’s hip and then drove past her in the last 25. Well done.
2.) Caeleb Dressel… Stud. Full on stud. Two monster swims and he looked great in both. What an athlete! A side note, too, is that – especially as it applies to NCAA athletes – this whole double / triple event thing is, I think, overblown. Athletes like Dressel have tonnes of experience with multiple high intensity swims through the college season. FYI, I think we’ll see 49-high tomorrow in the 100 ‘fly. He’ll win that… Read more »