South Africa’s Van Niekerk Hits C’Wealth Games Record In 50 Breast

2022 COMMONWEALTH GAMES

• Friday, July 29 – Wednesday, August 3, 2022
• Birmingham, England
• Sandwell Aquatic Center
• Start Times
  • Prelims: 10:30 am local / 5:30 am ET
  • Finals: 7:00 pm local / 2:00 pm ET
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Central
• Event Schedule
• Entries
• Live Results

Kicking off these 2022 Commonwealth Games in style was Lara van Niekerk of South Africa.

The 19-year-old busted out the 2nd fastest swim of her career to take the top seed in the women’s 50m breaststroke, clocking a big-time 29.82 in the heats. That not only came within a tenth of her own South African national record but also checked in as a new Games record.

Van Niekerk has been as fast as 29.72, a result she logged just this past April at the South African National Championships. Prior to that, she became the first-ever woman from her nation to hit a mark under the 30-second threshold in the event, posting 29.88  just this past December while competing at the Northern Tigers Championships in her native country.

Now, van Niekerk just became the first-ever Commonwealth Games swimmer to get under 30 seconds in this women’s 50m breast event. The previous Games record stood at the 30.17 Jamaican Alia Atkinson logged at the 2014 edition of this competition in Glasgow.

Van Niekerk looks in control here in Birmingham with 2 rounds to go, with the next-closest swimmer out of the heats represented by England’s national record holder Imogen Clark who touched in 30.26. Van Niekerk’s South African teammate and reigning 200m breast Olympic champion Tatjana Schoenmaker is also in the mix, having clinched the 4th seed in 30.76.

As a refresher, van Niekerk claimed bronze in this sprint at the 2022 World Championships, producing a time there in Budapest of 29.90.

WOMEN’S 50 BREAST PRELIMS

• CG Record: 30.17, Alia Atkinson (JAM), 2014

1. Lara van Niekerk, South Africa, 29.82 *CG record
2. Imogen Louise Clark, England, 30.26
3. Chelsea Hodges, Australia, 30.66
4. Tatjana Schoenmaker, South Africa, 30.76
5. Jenna Strauch, Australia, 30.77
6. Kara Aline Hanlon, Scotland, 30.99
7. Kaylene Corbett, South Africa, 31.07
8. Abbey Harkin, Australia, 31.48
9. Sophie Angus, Canada, 31.55
10. Sarah Vasey, England, 31.65
11. En Yi Letitia Sim, Singapore, 31.67
12. Laura Kinley, Isle of Man, 32.34
13. Lanihei Connolly, Cook Islands, 32.77
14. Jinq En Phee, Malaysia, 32.80
15. Laura le Cras, Guernsey, 33.09
16. Lillian Louise Higgs, Bahamas, 33.18