Ilya Shymanovich Swims 58.4 in the 100 Breast at Belarusian Open Championships

2023 BELARUS OPEN SWIM CHAMPIONSHIPS

Belarusian breaststrokerĀ Ilya Shymanovich concluded his racing at the 2023 Belarusian Open Swim Championships on Saturday with a third individual win, completing a sweep of the men’s breaststroke races.

After cruising through prelims and semis with times of 1:01.14 and 59.44, respectively, Shymanovich recorded a 58.41 in finals. That time is just .12 seconds away from his national record in the event, set in 2019, and is the second-best performance of his career.

It also ranks him #1 in the world this season, and would have earned a silver medal at last summer’s World Championships.

His opening 50 meter split of 26.83 was ahead of his Belarusian Record split; it was also at least three-tenths better than the opening 50 done by any athlete at last year’s World Championships (Nic Fink led at the turn in 27.14.

With Adam Peaty’s future uncertain, Shymanovich is part of a significant group of internationals, especially Europeans, in contention for Olympic gold medals, if Belarusian athletes are allowed into the Olympic Games. The country has been barred from most international sporting competitions since February 2022 for aiding Russia in its invasion of Ukraine.

Shymanovich is the World Record holder in the 100 breaststroke in a short course meters pool.

The swim came after wins earlier in the meet in the 50 breaststroke, where a 26.28 made him the #2 performer in history, and the 200 breaststroke, where a 2:12.56 was well shy of his personal best.

Other Highlight Swims

  • Anastasiya Shkurdai, the country’s top female swimmer, has shown no ill effects from a change of coaching. She crushed her best time in the 200 backstroke, swimming 2:06.95. Her previous best was a 2:09.38 from last July. She also won the 50 back (28.46) and 100 back (1:00.00), as she seems to be moving away from the butterfly that first made her well-known internationally. That swim is a new Belarusian Record for Shkurdai, shattering her own previous mark.
  • Alina Zmushko won the women’s 100 breaststroke in 1:06.47, which broke her own National Record of 1:06.62 set in 2021. That was the best result of her sweep of the breaststroke events: she also won the 50 in 30.67, missing her National Record from 2022 by .24 seconds, and the 200 breaststroke in 2:24.88, which missed her National Record from 2021 by .55 seconds.
  • RuslanĀ Skamaroshka won the men’s 100 free in 49.37, missing his best time by about four-tenths of a second.

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Andrew
1 year ago

Yā€™all are so mad about the ā€œdolphin kicksā€ but stay silent whenever Reece Whitley swims. Bro does 5 dolphin kicks off every wall in 1080p

Binky
Reply to  Andrew
1 year ago

Whitley is also a cheat.

Swimfan
Reply to  Andrew
1 year ago

People complain about Whitley all the timešŸ˜‚

IM FAN
Reply to  Andrew
1 year ago

Reece Whitley has been kinda irrelevant to the international LCM picture. If he was suddenly swimming 58s people would be giving him the same treatment.

Rap
1 year ago

Semiā€™s at Belarusian nationals really necessary?

Juan Cena
1 year ago

Typo: ā€œThe swim came after wins earlier in the meet in the 50 breaststroke, where a 26.83 made him the #2 performer in history,ā€ should say 26.28.

mcitaly697
1 year ago

Not a great time for a men in 100 butterfly

Tommy Schmitt
1 year ago

Fun fact: he actually swam a 54.81 but Lukashenko doesnā€™t want the world to know

alo
1 year ago

For aiding Russia in its invasion of Ukraine**

Chris
1 year ago

no Belarus

Noah
1 year ago

If he wins a Paris medal ill die

Troyy
Reply to  Noah
1 year ago

More likely he’ll choke.

Last edited 1 year ago by Troyy
battleship
Reply to  Noah
1 year ago

Why wait?…

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Braden Keith is the Editor-in-Chief and a co-founder/co-owner of SwimSwam.com. He first got his feet wet by building The Swimmers' Circle beginning in January 2010, and now comes to SwimSwam to use that experience and help build a new leader in the sport of swimming. Aside from his life on the InterWet, ā€¦

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