2025 World Junior Championships: Day 2 Prelims Live Recap

2025 World Junior Swimming Championships

• August 19-24, 2025
• Otopeni, Romania
• LCM (50 meters)
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  • Prelims: Day 1
  • Finals: Day 1

DAY 2 PRELIMS HEAT SHEET

Welcome to Day 2 of the 2025 World Junior Championships in Otopeni, Romania! The meet got off to a roaring start yesterday, seeing a World Junior Record and a pair of championship records fall. Neutral Athletes B leads the medal table following day 1, so we’ll see how the standing progress as today rolls on.

DAY 2 PRELIMS SCHEDULE:

• Boys 200 IM
• Girls 100 Freestyle
• Boys 100 Butterfly
• Girls 200 Butterfly
• Boys 200 Freestyle
• Mixed 4×100 Medley Relay
• Girls 800 Freestyle (Slow Heats)

The morning will kick off with the boys 200 IM, where Japan’s Yumeki Kojima comes in as the top seed with a 1:58.47.

After splitting a 1:56 on the US 4×200 free relay last night, Rylee Erisman comes in as the top seed in the girls 100 free this morning. Erisman has been as fast as 53.75, which puts her just off the championship record of 53.63 that Taylor Ruck set back in 2017.

Fellow American Audrey Derivaux comes in as the top seed in the girls 200 fly today. Derivaux enters with a 2:06.46, which makes her the top seed by nearly a second and puts her under the championship record of 2:07.20.

BOYS 200 INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY – PRELIMS

• World Record: 1:52.69 – Leon Marchand, FRA (2025)
• World Junior Record: 1:56.99 – Hubert Kos, HUN (2021)
• Championship Record: 1:57.29 – Maximus Williamson, USA (2023)

TOP 8 QUALIFIERS:

1. Mikhail Shcherbakov (NAB) – 1:59.09
2. Raito Numata (JPN) – 1:59.33
3. Yumeki Kojima (JPN) – 1:59.43
4. Robert-Andrei Badea (ROU) – 2:00.32
5. Yichen Xie (CHN) – 2:00.96
6. Iason Routoulas (GRE) – 2:01.06
7. Baylor Stanton (USA) – 2:01.10
8. Noah Cakir (USA) – 2:01.17

The morning kicked off with a pretty quick prelims of the boys 200 IM. NAB’s Mikhail Shcherbakov led the way with a 1:59.09. Behinf Shcherbakov, both of Japan’s swimmers, Raito Numata and Yumeki Kojima, were both under 2:00 as well. Kojima, who was the top seed coming into the morning, was exceptional on the front half of the race, splitting 25.28 on fly and 29.10 on back for a 54.38 on the opening 100m of the race. Meanwhile, Numata was great on the back half of the race, where he split 34.28 on breast and 27.93 on free, for a 1:02.21 on the 2nd 100 of the race. Shcherbakov, on the other hand, was solid all the way through the race, splitting 25.70 on fly, 30.40 on back, 34.76 on breast, and 28.23 on free.

The Americans in this field, Baylor Stanton and Noah Cakir, barely scraped through into tonight’s final, with Stanton taking 7th in 2:01.10 and Cakir 8th in 2:01.17. While they were the last swimmers to qualify for the final, both Americans went career bests this morning.

GIRLS 100 FREESTYLE – PRELIMS

• World Record: 51.71 – Sarah Sjostrom, SWE (2017)
• World Junior Record: 52.70 – Penny Oleksiak, CAN (2016)
• Championship Record: 53.63 – Taylor Ruck, CAN (2017)

TOP 16 QUALIFIERS:

1. Rylee Erisman (USA) – 53.17 (Championship Record)
2. Theodora Taylor (GBR) – 54.46
3. Lily King (USA) – 54.57
4. Kira Manokhina (NAB) – 54.73
5. Mizuki Hirai (JPN) – 54.86
6. Martine Damborg (DEN) – 54.92
7. Mingyu Luo (CHN) – 55.08
8. Zoe Pedersen (NZL) – 55.16
9. Sum Yiu Li (HKG) – 55.42
10. Leah Tigert (CAN) – 55.64
11. Barbara Lesniewska (POL) – 55.94 (TIE)
12. Ainsley Trotter (AUS) – 55.94 (TIE)
13. Alessandra Mao (ITA) – 56.02
14. Gilaine Ma (HKG) – 56.03
15. Yizhou Chen (CHN) – 56.04
16. Skye Carter (GBR) – 56.09

After a great split on the 4×200 free relay last night, American Rylee Erisman put up an incredible performance in the 100 free this morning. Erisman ripped a 53.17 to clock the top time of the morning by well over a second. That swim blew away Erisman’s previous personal best of 53.75, also shattering the Championship Record, which was the 53.63 set by Taylor Ruck back in 2017. Erisman was out very fast, splitting 25.79 on the opening 50, then she came home in 27.38. With the swim, Erisman, 16, shattered the US National Age Group Record for 15-16 girls, which stood at 53.55.

This is looking to be a great event for the US as Lily King was 3rd this morning in 54.57. King was just off her career best of 54.42, which she set at US Nationals in June.

Great Britain’s Theodora Taylor posted the 2nd-fastest time of the morning, swimming a 54.46. The performance marks a new career best for Taylor by 0.13 seconds. Great Britain’s Skye Carter was the last swimmer to make it through to semifinals, finishing 16th with a 56.09.

BOYS 100 BUTTERFLY – PRELIMS

• World Record: 49.45 – Caeleb Dressel, USA (2021)
• World Junior Record: 50.62 – Kristof Milak, HUN (2017)
• Championship Record: 51.08 – Kristof Milak, HUN (2017)

TOP 16 QUALIFIERS:

1. Lucio Flavio Filho (BRA) – 52.48
2. Rowan Cox (USA) – 52.63
3. Dean Fearn (GBR) – 52.88 (TIE)
4. Maxim Skazobtsov (KAZ) – 52.88 (TIE)
5. Han Jooyung (KOR) – 52.99
6. Francesco Ceolin (ITA) – 53.12
7. Yavuz Omer Aga (TUR) – 53.29
8. Evgenii Shilovskii (NAB) – 53.30
9. Tai Pearson (RSA) – 53.33
10. Tajus Juska (LTU) – 53.34
11. Arda Akkoyun (TUR) – 53.57
12. Li Taiyu (CHN) – 53.60
13. Charlie Lutton (AUS) – 53.64
14. Egor Proshin (NAB) – 53.78
15. Emiliano Calle Bedoya (COL) – 53.87
16. Rishat Zhumagulov (KAZ) – 53.89

Brazil’s Lucio Flavio Filho led the way in prelims of the boys 100 fly this morning, swimming a 52.48. He was just off his personal best of 52.40. Filho was out in 24.47 on the opening 50m, then came home in 28.01.

American Rowan Cox clocked a 52.63 this morning, which was good for 2nd. Cox was just a hair off his career best of 52.59, which he swam at last summer’s Junior Pan Pacs. He had the fastest back half in the field this morning, splitting 27.55 on the 2nd 50.

Great Briatin’s Dean Fearn and Kazakhstan’s Maxim Skazobtsov tied for 3rd this morning, each swimming 52.88. This was easily Kazakhstan’s best performance of the meet so far, as Rishat Zhumagulov also made it through to semifinals, finishing 16th in 53.89.

GIRLS 200 BUTTERFLY – PRELIMS

• World Record: 2:01.81 – Liu Zige, CHN (2009)
• World Junior Record: 2:03.03 – Summer McIntosh, CAN (2024)
• Championship Record: 2:07.20 – Lana Pudar, BIH (2023)

TOP 8 QUALIFIERS:

1. Audrey Derivaux (USA) – 2:09.16
2. Umi Ishizuka (JPN) – 2:09.19
3. Serafima Fokina (NAB) – 2:09.40
4. Gong Zhenqi (CHN) – 2:09.57
5. Zhou Xinyang (CHN) – 2:10.08
6. Clare Watson (CAN) – 2:11.02
7. Edith Price (GBR) – 2:12.11
8. Jessica Cole (AUS) – 2:12.13

Audrey Derivuax (USA) clocked the top time of prelims in the girls 200 fly, swimming a 2:09.16. Derivaux came into the meet as the top seed, entering with her career best of 2:06.46, which is under the Championship Record of 2:07.20. This morning, Derivaux was out pretty fast, splitting 28.71 on the opening 50 and 31.91 on the 2nd 50, for a 1:00.62 on the 1st 100. She then seemed to ease up a bit after that point, splitting 33.60 on the 3rd 50 and 34.94 on the last 50, for a 1:07.54 on the back half of the race.

Japan’s Umi Ishizuka came in 2nd this morning with a 2:09.19. She was well within a second of her personal best 2:08.54. Of note, both Derivaux and Ishizuka recently turned 16 years old within the past few weeks.

NAB’s Serafima Fokina and China’s Gong Zhenqi were both under 2:10 in the 200 fly this morning as well. China was the only country to get both their swimmers into tonight’s final, seeing Zhou Xinyang take 5th in 2:10.08.

BOYS 200 FREESTYLE – PRELIMS

• World Record: 1:42.00 – Paul Biedermann, GER (2009)
• World Junior Record: 1:42.97 – David Popovici, ROU (2022)
• Championship Record: 1:46.18 – David Popovici, ROU (2022)

TOP 8 QUALIFIERS:

1. Christian Giefing (AUT) – 1:47.94
2. Raito Numata (JPN) – 1:48.10
3. Xu Haibo (CHN) – 1:48.11
4. Carlos D’Ambrosio (ITA) – 1:48.35
5. Kazusa Kuroda (JPN) – 1:48.56
6. Alberto Ferrazza (ITA) – 1:48.60
7. Ahmet Mete Boylu (TUR) – 1:48.74
8. Guilherme Escudeiro (BRA) – 1:48.79

Austria’s Christian Giefing led prelims of the boys 200 free with a 1:47.94. He was about a second off his career best of 1:46.88. Giefing was very consistent this morning, splitting 24.90, 27.44, 27.68, and 27.92 respectively by 50.

Japan’s Raito Numata came in 2nd this morning with a 1:48.10. Numata was exceptional at the end of the race, roaring home in 26.17 on the final 50, which was the fastest final 50 split in the field this morning by well over a second. Overall, Numata was 53.21 on the opening 100 and 54.89 on the 2nd 100 this morning.

Japan saw their other swimmer, Kazusa Kuroda, make it through to tonight’s final as well. Kuroda clocked a 1:48.56 for 5th this morning.

Italy also saw both their swimmers make it through to the final tonight. Carlos D’Ambrosio came in 4th this morning with a 1;48.35, while Alberto Ferrazza took 6th in 1:48.60. D’Ambrosio holds the fastest career best in the field, having been 1:45.99 before.

MIXED 4×100 MEDLEY RELAY – PRELIMS

• World Record: 3:37.43 – USA (2024)
• World Junior Record: 3:44.84 – USA (2019)
• Championship Record: 3:44.84 – USA (2019)

TOP 8 QUALIFIERS:

1. Neutral Athletes B – 3:49.87
2. Japan – 3:50.30
3. Italy – 3:50.62
4. Great Britain – 3:50.84
5. USA – 3:50.97
6. China – 3:51.90
7. South Korea – 3:52.32
8. Poland – 3:52.70

After having won the boys 4×100 free relay last night in a World Junior Record, Neutral Athletes B posted the top time of the morning in the mixed 4×100 medley relay. Mark Shibanov clocked a 55.90 on backstroke, Nikita Batuev was 1:00.99 on breaststroke, Serafima Fokina split 58.58 on fly, and Mariia Poleshchuk anchored in 54.40, for a 3:49.87.

There are some clear changes that could be made to lineups for finals tonight. For example, Italy came in 3rd this morning, but they didn’t use Carlos D’Ambrosio on their relay. D’Ambrosio anchored the Italian 4×100 free relay in 47.20 last night, so he could be a huge asset for Italy in finals tonight.

Similarly, The US came in 5th this morning, but they’ll be able to throw Rylee Erisman on the anchor leg tonight after she broke the Championship Record in the girls 100 free this morning.

GIRLS 800 FREESTYLE – SLOW HEATS (TIMED FINAL)

• World Record: 8:04.12 – Katie Ledecky, USA (2025)
• World Junior Record: 8:11.00 – Katie Ledecky, USA (2014)
• Championship Record: 8:22.49 – Lani Pallister, AUS (2019)

TOP 8:

1. Kennedi Dobson (USA) – 8:34.74
2. Yan Tiaoshan (CHN) – 8:35.83
3. Ella Cosgrove (CAN) – 8:44.14
4. Lilla Szabo (HUN) – 8:44.61
5. Diana Gabriela Stiger (ROU) – 8:44.75
6. Lucrezia Domina (ITA) – 8:47.91
7. Amelie Smith (AUS) – 8:50.92
8. Selinnur Sade (TUR) – 8:54.91

Out of the 3 heats that swam the girls 800 free this morning, American Kennedi Dobson and China’s Yan Tiaoshan shown through. Dobson clocked the top time this morning with an 8:34.74. The performance marks a huge personal best for Dobson, who entered the meet with a top mark of 8:37.92. Dobson has really built some momentum through the first two days of the meet, as she led the girls 4×200 free relay off in a career best of 1:57.53 yesterday.

As for Yan, she blew away her entry time of 8:42.85, taking 2nd overall in 8:35.83. Of note, Yan is only 15 years old.

A reminder that this is a timed final event. The fastest 8 seeds will be competing in the fastest heat, which will take place at the end of tonight’s finals session. Given that, it seems fairly likely that at least Dobson, and perhaps Yan, could wind up in the top 8 once all is said an done. Dobson’s time from this morning is faster than one of the seeds in tonight’s heat.