2024 World Aquatics Swimming World Cup – Incheon
- Friday, October 24th – Sunday, October 26th
- Shanghai, China
- Prelims at 9:30am local (8:30pm ET previous night)/Finals at 6:30pm local (6:30am ET)
- SCM (25m)
- Meet Central
- Event Schedule
- Entries Book
- Live Results
Hello, everyone and welcome to the first night of finals at the Incheon stop of the 2024 Swimming World Cup series. It’s the same order of events as the first night in Shanghai, which means it’s going to be a packed slate.
Noe Ponti and Kate Douglass are the top seeds in two events each. Ponti is fresh off record-setting performances in Shanghai, including a world record in the 50-meter butterfly. The day before that swim, he set European and World Cup records in the 100 butterfly (48.40). That’s his first event of the night; he swam a 49.58 in prelims this morning. Dutch star Nyls Korstanje joined him under the 50-second mark (49.74), while Andrei Minakov and Teong Tzen Wei are further back with 50-points.
Ponti led the way in the men’s 100 IM heats as well, clocking 51.84. Once again, this is a stacked final: Leon Marchand is in the mix and so is Daiya Seto, who has simply dominated the SCM IM scene for years. Douglass leads the women’s 100 IM (57.90), more than a half-second ahead of Canada’s Mary-Sophie Harvey (who’s top seed in the 400 freestyle). She’s got an even bigger lead in the women’s 200 breaststroke, checking in as the only swimmer sub-2:20 in the heats with a 2:18.25. Douglass won both these events in Shanghai and will look to continue her quest for both Triple Crowns in Incheon.
Women’s 400m Freestyle – Final
- World Record: 3:51.30 – Li Bingjie, China (2022)
- World Cup Record: 3:52.80 – Summer McIntosh, Canada (2022)
- World Junior Record: 3:52.80 – Summer McIntosh, Canada (2022)
Podium:
- Mary-Sophie Harvey (CAN) — 3:56.78
- Siobhan Haughey (HKG) — 3:58.06
- Kobori Waka (JPN) — 4:04.09
100 and 200 freestyle specialist Siobhan Haughey took the lead in this 400 freestyle final early, splitting 56.97 at the 100 and 1:57.36 at the 200. She was over a second ahead of the top seed, Mary-Sophie Harvey, who had pulled herself solidly into second place.
Over the last year, Harvey has had a big breakout in the long-course 200 meter freestyle. But in this race, Harvey used the back 200 meters to make her move. She negative split the race and slowly cut into Haughey’s lead until she finally overtook her with about 25 meters to go. Haughey had no answer for the Canadian in the closing stretch, so Harvey pulled away to win the race in a huge lifetime best of 3:56.78. It’s her first time sub-4:00 in the event.
Haughey, who said after the race that entering the event was a last minute decision, finished firmly in second place with a 3:58.06. Japan’s Kobori Waka took third place with a 4:04.09.
Men’s 400m Freestyle – Final
- World Record: 3:32.25 – Yannick Agnel, France (2012)
- World Cup Record: 3:32.77 – Paul Biedermann, Germany (2009)
- World Junior Record: 3:37.92 – Matthew Sates, South Africa (2021)
Podium:
- Pan Zhanle (CHN) — 3:36.43
- Duncan Scott (GBR) — 3:37.04
- Kieran Smith (USA) — 3:37.15
The entire Shanghai podium–Duncan Scott, Kieran Smith, and Danas Rapsys–was back in the mix for the men’s 400 freestyle. Add in Pan Zhanle and Kim Woo-min and this was a stacked final. These five main contenders did not wait to jmp on this race and were all 1:47-point at the 200 meters, with Smith and Kim tied at 1:47.10.
Kim, the Olympic medalist in the long-course version of this race, couldn’t hold the pace on the back half but the other four weren’t separated by much as they charged over the final meters. Pan did not lead the entire race–he was losing ground out of the turns then catching up to the other three after the first few strokes. He put in a huge effort on the final 25 meters, splitting 12.31 to get his hand on the wall first in 3:36.43.
Scott, last week’s winner, was less than a tenth off his time from Shanghai, continuing to hang in the neighborhood of James Guy‘s British record. It came down to the touch between second through fourth; Scott was just .11 seconds ahead of Kieran Smith, who got ahead of Rapsys for third.
Women’s 50m Backstroke – Final
- World Record: 25.25 – Maggie MacNeil, Canada (2022)
- World Cup Record: 25.36 – Kaylee McKeown, Australia (2024)
- World Junior Record: 26.08 – Sara Curtis, Italy (2024)
Podium:
- Regan Smith (USA) — 25.71
- Ingrid Wilm (CAN) — 26.09
- Beata Nelson (USA) — 26.17
Regan Smith didn’t have a strong start to this 50 backstroke final, but she recovered and pulled away to take another win on this World Cup series. Smith clocked 25.71 to win, just .01 off the 25.70 she swam for second behind Kaylee McKeown in Shanghai. Like last week, Smith has a tough double coming up with this race and the 200 butterfly and only the men’s 200 backstroke in between.
Ingrid Wilm and Beata Nelson rounded out the podium. Wilm was just .06 seconds off her lifetime best from a 2021 ISL meet, while Nelson did swim a lifetime best. Her 26.17 undercuts her previous lifetime best of 26.33, also from a 2021 ISL match.
Men’s 200m Backstroke – Final
- World Record: 1:45.63 – Mitch Larkin, Australia (2015)
- World Cup Record: 1:46.11 – Arkady Vyachanin, Russia (2009)
- World Junior Record: 1:48.02 – Kliment Kolesnikov, Russia (2017)
Podium:
- Pieter Coetze (RSA) — 1:50.05
- Kacper Stokowski (POL) — 1:51.56
- Enoch Robb (AUS) — 1:51.96
Pieter Coetze is the first winner from Shanghai to win the same event in Incheon, keeping the dream for a Triple Crown at the send of the series alive. Coetze wasn’t under the 1:50-mark like he was last week (for a lifetime best) but he still was able to separate himself from the rest of the finalists and power ahead for the win.
Coetze touched in 1:50.05, about 1.5 seconds ahead of the second place Kacper Stokowski, who jumped onto the podium after finishing fourth last week. After a 1:51.65 in Shanghai, Stokowski is inching closer to his lifetime best of 1:51.59 from the Toronto stop on the 2022 World Cup series.
Enoch Robb defended his third place finish from Shanghai with a 1:51.96.
Women’s 200m Fly – Final
- World Record: 1:59.61 — Mireia Belmonte Garcia, Spain (2014)
- World Cup Record: 2:00.78 — Liu Zige, China (2009)
- World Junior Record: 2:02.96 — Suzuka Hasegawa, Japan (2017)
Podium:
- Bella Grant (AUS) — 2:03.13
- Regan Smith (USA) — 2:03.21
- Laura Lahtinen (FIN) — 2:03.79
Newcomer Bella Grant came into the final as the top seed and had a huge swim to defend that place in the final. Finland’s Laura Lahtinen took the race out hard; she set a Finnish record last week and was first to the wall at the halfway point in 58.55 ahead of both Grant (59.51) and Smith (59.79).
Grant dug in on the third 50, splitting 31.55 to move into first place with 50 meters to go. Smith relied on her underwaters to pull her closer to the lead. On her second event in about ten minutes, Smith mounted a late charge but was unable to chase down Grant in the closing meters.
Grant won the race in a lifetime best 2:03.13, .08 seconds ahead of the Olympic medallist Smith. Lahtinen finished third, slightly off her Finnish record from Shanghai with a 2:03.79.
Men’s 100m Fly – Final
- World Record: 47.78 – Caeleb Dressel, United States (2020)
- World Cup Record: 48.40 — Noe Ponti, Switzerland (2024
- World Junior Record: 49.03 – Ilya Kharun, Canada (2022)
Podium:
- Noe Ponti (SUI) — 48.81
- Nyls Korstanje (NED) — 48.99
- Andrei Minakov (NIA) — 49.71
Last week, Ponti swam a European and World Cup record of 48.40. He was off that time this week but still had a dramatic race in a different way as he lost his goggles on the dive. They stayed on his face but Ponti, who also had contacts in, said after the race that he could not see anything and was relying on counting his strokes.
Ponti still grabbed the event win, swimming a 48.81 to just keep himself ahead of a charging Nyls Korstanje. Korstanje finished second in 48.99, setting a Dutch record as he cracked the 49-second barrier for the first time in his career. Back on the international scene as a neutral athlete, Andrei Minakov finished third with a 49.71.
Women’s 200m Breaststroke – Final
World Record: 2:14.57 – Rebecca Soni, United States (2009)World Cup Record: 2:15.42 – Leisel Jones, Australia (2009)- World Junior Record: 2:14.70 – Evgeniia Chikunova, Russia (2022)
Podium:
- Kate Douglass (USA) — 2:14.16 World Record
- Tara Kinder (AUS) — 2:19.21
- Park Sieun (KOR) — 2:19.58
Kate Douglass is now a individual world record holder as she put in a stunning effort to take down the world record in the 200 breaststroke–a mark which Rebecca Soni had held at 2:14.57 since 2009. The Olympic champion in this event, Douglass was clearly the favorite in this race heading into the final after a dominant performance in Shanghai and a strong prelims swim.
She opened the race in 30.68, and extended her lead by turning in 1:04.75. She was well ahead of the world record line and after a 34.45 split, she was still eight-tenths ahead of Soni’s pace. The world record line began to creep up on her in the closing meters of the race, but still got her hands on the wall .41 seconds ahead of the former world record with a blistering 2:14.16.
Ponti swam a world record in the 50 butterfly last week but this is the first world record on the women’s side of the World Cup series.
She won the race by almost five seconds, as Australia’s Tara Kinder and South Korea’s Park Sieun took second and third in 2:19.21 and 2:19.58.
Men’s 100m Breaststroke – Final
- World Record: 55.28 – Ilya Shymanovich, NIA (2021)
- World Cup Record: 55.61 – Cameron van der Burgh, South Africa (2009)
- World Junior Record: 56.66 – Simone Cersuolo, Italy (2021)
Podium:
- Ilya Shymanovich (NIA) — 56.10
- Qin Haiyang (CHN) — 56.22
- Caspar Corbeau (NED) — 56.59
After a thrilling race in Shanghai and Ilya Shymanovich and Caspar Corbeau tying for the top seed out of prelims, it was clear that we were in for another close race in the men’s 100 breaststroke. The winning time wasn’t as fast as they were last week, but it was still a great race between Shymanovich, Corbeau, and last week’s winner Qin Haiyang.
Shymanovich set the pace from the first 25 meters and held onto the lead for the entire race. Qin outsplit Shymanovich on the final two 25s but Shymanovich, the world record holder in this race, had built enough of a lead on the first 50 that he was able to hold on for the win in 56.10, .12 seconds ahead of Qin.
Corbeau improved from last week, moving up onto the podium from a 5th place in Shanghai and improving from the 56.70 he swam last week with a 56.59.
Women’s 50m Freestyle – Final
- World Record: 22.93 – Ranomi Kromowidjojo, Netherlands (2017)
- World Cup Record: 22.93 – Ranomi Kromowidjojo, Netherlands (2017)
- World Junior Record: 23.69 – Anastasyia Shkurdai, NIA (2020)
Podium:
- Kasia Wasick (POL) — 23.51
- Yang Junxuan (CHN) — 24.11
- Milla Jansen (AUS) — 24.32
Kasia Wasick won the women’s 50 freestyle for the second time on this World Cup. Not only did she win the race by a full six-tenths, but she significantly improved her winning time from Shanghai, dropping from a 23.87 to 23.51.
Yang Junxuan got onto the 50 freestyle podium for the first time on the World Cup–she also improved from last week’s swim with a 24.11, which is nine-hundredths faster than he time last week. Australia’s Milla Jansen maintained her third-place, clocking 24.32.
Men’s 50m Freestyle – Final
- World Record: 20.16 – Caeleb Dressel, United States (2020)
- World Cup Record: 20.48 – Vladimir Morozov, Russia (2018)
- World Junior Record: 20.98 – Kenzo Simons, Netherlands (2019)
Podium:
- Ji Yuchan (KOR) — 20.80
- Isaac Cooper (AUS) — 21.07
- Jamie Jack (AUS) — 21.09
Ji Yuchan delivered the first South Korean win of the meet for the home nation fans, blazing to the win in a 20.80. It’s Ji’s second national record of the meet, improving the mark of 20.95 that he established in prelims by a full .15 seconds. He led the entire race, flipping in 10.00 at the 25-meter mark, then adding a field-best second 50 split of 10.80 on the way home.
Isaac Cooper led an Australian 2-3 finish in this race, improving from his time in Shanghai with a 21.07 for second-place in Incheon. While Ji had separated himself from the field, it was a tight race behind him; second through fifth were separated by six-hundredths. Cooper’s countrymate Jamie Jack got his hand on the wall for third in 21.09, just .02 seconds behind Cooper and a hundredth ahead of Marius Kusch.
Women’s 100m IM – Final
- World Record: 55.98 — Gretchen Walsh, United States (2024) *pending ratification
- World Cup Record: 56.51 – Katinka Hosszu, Hungary (2017)
- World Junior Record: 57.59 – Anastasyia Shkurdai, NIA (2020)
Podium:
- Kate Douglass (USA) — 56.97
- Yu Yiting (CHN) — 57.88
- Mary-Sophie Harvey (CAN) — 57.95
Shortly after setting a world record in the women’s 200 breaststroke, Douglass was back up for the women’s 100 IM final. She flew to the win in 56.97, remaining undefeated on this year’s World Cup series. Similarly to last week, Yu Yiting got off to a strong start and was leading through the first 50 meters of the race. Douglass went to work on the breaststroke leg, splitting 16.78 to take over the lead.
She didn’t look back from there, closing out in a 13.88 freestyle split to get to the wall two-hundredths quicker than she was last week. That improves her standing as the third fastest swimmer in event history, behind her teammate Gretchen Walsh, the newly minted world record holder in the event, and Katinka Hosszu.
Yu repeated as the silver medalist in 57.88, about three-tenths off last week’s Asian record swim, while Harvey got back on the podium for the second time this session in 57.95.
Men’s 100m IM – Final
- World Record: 49.28 – Caeleb Dressel, United States (2020)
- World Cup Record: 50.26 – Vladimir Morozov, Russia (2018)
- World Junior Record: 50.63 – Kliment Kolesnikov, Russia (2018)
Podium:
- Leon Marchand (FRA) / Noe Ponti (SUI) — 51.00
- —
- Thomas Ceccon (ITA) — 51.15
We got another great race between Ponti and Leon Marchand to close out the session. After being separated by just .01 seconds in Shanghai, the two swimmers tied for the win in Incheon, clocking 51.00.
Thomas Ceccon, the 100 backstroke Olympic champion and 50 butterfly world champion, led the race around at the halfway point. He split 10.39 on butterfly and 12.48 on backstroke as he made the back-to-breast turn at 22.87, .34 seconds ahead of the second-place Ponti and 1.01 seconds ahead of Marchand, who was running fifth.
Ponti forwent the crossover turn again this week. Marchand made his move on the breaststroke leg, firing off a 14.38 to move into the lead. Ponti got jammed on the breaststroke to freestyle turn, but had a strong underwater to not lose touch with Marchand (who is no slouch at underwaters either). Ponti swam 12.44 on the freestyle leg, closing the gap to Marchand and stopping the clock at the same time as the Frenchman.
Ceccon was second at the final turn and maintained a spot on the podium with a 51.15. In the interview after the race, he called the swim his best of the series so far.
Top Five Swimmers After Day 1
Note: These are the standings for the Incheon stop of the series, not the cumulative ranking that is also being tracked to determine an overall winner after the final meet in Singapore.
Women
- Kate Douglass (USA) — 39.7
- Regan Smith (USA) — 36.5
- Mary-Sophie Harvey (CAN) — 35.4
- Beata Nelson (USA) — 29.1
- Laura Lahtinen (FIN) — 24.3
Men
- Noe Ponti (SUI) — 38.3
- Nyls Korstanje (NED) — 27.7
- Caspar Corbeau (NED) — 25.3
- Ilya Shymanovich (NIA) — 19.5
- Pan Zhanle (CHN) — 19.4
what a fun 100 IM race, both men and women.
idk if we would have seen ponti v marchand heads up, in the ncaa, but that would have been fun, too
Love that Mary-Sophie Harvey is swimming and swimming great!
Ponti having “ a strong underwater” at the last turn of the 100 IM May be the understatement of the year.
After reviewing the standings thru Day 1:
As an American I declare the following response:
Meh
Next up for Kate Douglass, the W 50 FL.
At this rate, Kate Douglass will need to buy a wheelbarrow to collect the earnings.
World aquatics will actually need to start giving better payments first. Was the WR bonus not 25000 at one point what is it now I feel like it’s gone down
How can WA fluff their own pillows if they are giving it all to the swimmers?
Shame we got no more ISL it actually put pressure on WA to treat their athletes half decently now it feels like we’ve gone backwards and everyone has accepted it and there’s been no Challenge.
Edit: I just went and checked a world record bonus was raised to $50,000 in 2021 it was lowered back to $10,000 last year. Both Ponti and Douglass have been robbed big time
Prize money for a WR at the World Cup in 2021 was $10,000, the same as it is this year. Prize money for a WR at the World Championships was $50,000, that number is now $25,000.
So they did decrease it at the World Championships, but it’s the same at the World Cup.
With the number of World Cup stops being so drastically reduced there’s way less prize money as a while being offered. Katinka had many years where she pulled well over $300k and the number of swimmers making more than $100k was way higher. Last year the top earners are topping out under $190k. Yes it’s less work, but I think there’s a lot of swimmers who would swim more meets if they were offered.
Ain’t nobody gonna catch any of Katinka’s records with so few meets.
It is only 3 stops this year. Katinka used to pull that sort of money when it was 8 stops and each race had prize money attached to it
I think there definitely would be.
But I also think what World Aquatics is doing is smart. I think getting a consistent field at 3, and then deciding if you can add a 4th or a 5th stop, is the way to rebuild/regrow it. The last few years of the mega-series, the points/standings became kind of silly with so many swimmers popping in and out.
I don’t think we’ll ever go back to the 7-12 stop series we’ve seen in the past. I think at most, we’ll get two pods of three meets each.
Fair enough it’s still less money overall the World Cup used to have something like nine stops now we have three…
ISL is sorely missed
amigo, that’s the standard for any large corporation… look at the bonuses for USA swim admin, World Aquatics, UEFA, FIFA… athlete’s make peanuts in comparison.
Although, NBA/NFL contracts seem a bit egregious, but people keep paying the ridiculous ticket prices. Remember when NFL rookies would be making more than Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Manning’s. etc…
Remember that Pan was 3:45 earlier this year so don’t be too surprised
I am surprised that he hasn’t put together a good 200 free LCM yet besides that one 1:44 in 2023
Also was 1:43 on a relay at worlds this February, but yes he does seem capable of 1:43 flat start
Think he just wanted the 100 free really bad so deprioritised the 200. Even the 4×2 is in a sh-t of a spot in the Olympic schedule so there’s a risk of hurting the 100.
Michael Andrew did exactly as expected in that 100 breaststroke heat and caused me permanent eye damage
GOOD GOD THE WASTED POTENTIAL