2021 FINA WORLD CUP STOP #4 – KAZAN
- Thursday, October 28 – Saturday, October 30th
- Kazan Aquatics Palace, Kazan, Russia
- Prelims: 10 am local / 3 am ET
- Finals: 6 pm local / 11 am ET
- SCM (25m)
- Results
On the final day of racing at the 2021 FINA World Cup in Kazan, Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s 15-year-old Olympian Lana Pudar managed to down the 100 butterfly national record with a 57.39. That swim is an improvement upon her own former mark of 57.86 from November 2020 and was good enough to give her a 3rd place finish in the heat behind Emma McKeon (55.63) and Maria Ugolkova (56.89).
By breaking the 100 butterfly national record, she successfully re-wrote the entire short course butterfly record book Bosnia Herzegovina courtesy of her prior 200 and 50 butterfly performances on days 1 and 2 of the meet.
Pudar held the 50 fly record heading into the meet at a 26.57, also from November 2020, but broke that mark during prelims with a 26.15. The morning swim allowed her to advance to the final in 5th place. In the final, she fell to 6th overall but was even faster than she was in prelims, establishing a new record of 26.09.
In the 200 butterfly, it was Amina Kajtaz who held the NR before this meet at a 2:09.73 from December 2019 at the Croatian Championships. Pudar didn’t quite surpass that mark during her prelims race in Kazan, hitting a 2:10.49 for 6th place but then lowered her PB to a 2:08.21 in the final which for 4th place overall.
Pudar, at only 15 years of age, now holds all short course and long course butterfly records for Bosnia and Herzegovina, along with the short course 200 backstroke record. She picked up her first few international medals earlier in 2021 at the European Junior Championships by reaching the podium in all 3 butterfly events. Pudar took gold in the 100 butterfly with a 57.56 and took silver in both the 50 and 200 with a 26.29 and 2:09.59, respectively.
She followed up her performance at the Tokyo Olympics where she was one of the youngest swimmer entered. She raced the 100 butterfly and finished 19th overall with a 58.32.
It is amazing how a 15yo girl with almost non-existent support of her country made this huge success and won the first medal ever for her country.
Lana has support, but no pool in her hometown yet. She trains in the capital.