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Disclaimer: Swim of the Week is not meant to be a conclusive selection of the best overall swim of the week, but rather one Featured Swim to be explored in deeper detail. The Swim of the Week is an opportunity to take a closer look at the context of one of the many fast swims this week, perhaps a swim that slipped through the cracks as others grabbed the headlines, or a race we didn’t get to examine as closely in the flood of weekly meets.
Swedish sprinter Elias Persson joined an elite club in his country’s history last Saturday at the Linköping Water Games, becoming just the third Swede to break 22 seconds in the long course 50 freestyle.
Persson fired off a time of 21.98 in the 50 free final in Linköping, knocking 17 one-hundredths off his previous best of 22.15 to join the elite sub-22 club.
The only other two Swedes who have broken 22 seconds are national record holder Stefan Nystrand and Bjorn Seeliger.
Nystrand, the 2007 World Championship bronze medalist and former SCM world record holder in the 50 and 100 free, got down to 21.45 at the 2009 World Championships in Rome, while Seeliger set a lifetime best of 21.67 at the 2024 World Championships in Doha.
All-Time Swedish Performers, Men’s 50 Freestyle (LCM)
- Stefan Nystrand, 21.45 – 2009
- Bjorn Seeliger, 21.67 – 2024
- Elias Persson, 21.98 – 2026
- Petter Stymne, 22.18 – 2009
- Isak Eliasson, 22.29 – 2021
For Persson, who turns 24 on April 3, he set his previous best of 22.15 last April at the Helsinki Swim Meet, and then matched it in July at the World University Games in Berlin, where he made the final and finished 8th.
He also represented Sweden at the 2025 World Championships in Singapore, placing 32nd in the 50 free (22.27), and at the 2025 European SC Championships this past December, placing 23rd in the 50 free (21.48) and 39th in the 100 free (47.66) while anchoring Sweden’s national record-breaking 200 medley relay.
Persson will be back in action next week at the Malmsten Swim Open in Stockholm, coming in as the #8 seed in the 50 free (though his new best time would rank him 3rd). His swim in Linköping also moves him into 24th in the 2025-26 world rankings.
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Congratularions, a huge barrier breached, but more generally It’s crazy how much this event has stood still at the top while getting incredibly deep over the last few years. Hopefully somebody steps up to McEvoy’s level in the run up to LA.
Separately Welsh LC Nationals are going on atm; Highlight has been Theodora Taylor (2009), aka mini Kate Douglass… 54.2 100fr, 26.8 100fl, 2.26.2 200br treble to tune up for British Champs.
Anyone know if Seeliger is still swimming?
I think he is working now in finance, not swimming, at least last summer was taking time off https://www.aftonbladet.se/sportbladet/a/dRKPnw/os-simmaren-kan-sluta-bara-25-ar-gammal
Seems like anyone can work in finance these days lol