Kate Douglass’s Speed Powers the USA to a World Record (SC Worlds Day 1 Relay Analysis)

Women’s 400 Freestyle Relay -Final

• World Record: 3:25.43, Australia (2022)
• World Championship Record: 3:25.43 – Australia (2022)
• 2022 SC World Champion: Australia, 3:25.43

Podium

1. USA (K. Douglass, K. Berkoff, A. Shackell, G. Walsh) – 3:25.01 ***NEW WORLD RECORD***
2. Australia (M. Harris, M. Jansen, A. Perkins, L. Pallister) – 3:28.25
3. Canada (M-S. Harvey, S. McIntosh, I. Wilm, P. Oleksiak) – 3:28.44
4. Neutral Athletes B – 3:28.73
5. Italy – 3:29.58
6. Sweeden – 3:29.81
7. Hungary – 3:30.10
8. Germany – 3:30.77

You can read more about the World Record here, but for the purposes of this article we are going to be looking at all of the splits and seeing where teams made their moves to get on to the podium.

Leadoff Legs (Flat Start)

Rank	Swimmer	Nation	Time	Team Position before	Team Position After
1	Kate Douglass	USA	50.95		1
2	Daria Klepikova	NAB	51.96		2
3	Mary-Sophie Harvey	CAN	52.40		3
4	Sara Junevik	SWE	52.50		4
5	Sofia Morini	ITA	52.55		5
6	Meg Harris	AUS	52.59		6
7	Nikolett Padar	HUN	52.69		7
8	Nina Jazy	GER	53.22		8

After setting the American Record at the Singapore stop of the World Cup Series, Kate Douglass was just a little off as her 50.95 was just .13 slower than her time from a month ago. However, her time was more than enough to give the Americans the lead they needed. Out in 24.26, the only sub-25 time in the field. Douglass would close in 26.69 to give the American relay team more than a second lead over Daria Klepikova and the Neutral Athletes from Russia.

Klepikova, who is entered in the individual 100, was faster than her seed time as her 51.96 broke the 52 barrier, slcing .07 off her individual entry time and improving greatly upon her 52.60 from this morning. Mary-Sophie Harvey kept the Canadians close with a respectable 52.40 especially after having raced both the 400 free and 200 IM earlier in the session.

Australia’s Meg Harris was a little rough in her first swim on the meet, posting a time of 52.59 which left the Aussies in 6th.

2nd Legs (Flying Start)

Rank/Overall	Swimmer	Nation	Time	Team Position before	Team Position After
1/2	Daria Trofimova	NAB	51.36	2	2
2/3	Katharine Berkoff	USA	51.38	1	1
3/4	Milla Jansen	AUS	51.62	6	=4
4/5	Louise Hansson	SWE	51.67	4	3
5/7	Sara Curtis	ITA	51.69	5	6
6/8	Summer McIntosh	CAN	51.81	3	=4
7/20	Nicole Maier	GER	52.68	8	8
8/22	Panna Ugrai	HUN	52.93	7	7

From one Daria to another, Darua Trifumova posted the fastest split amongst the second legs and 3rd fastest overall in the whole field, dropping an impressive amount of time, going from a flat start individual entry of 52.19 to a relay split of 51.36.

As impressive as it was, especially considering she was 51.84 in the morning, it did not do much to dent the American lead, as Katharine Berkoff was just .02 slower with a relay split of 51.38.

The young Australian Milla Jansen helped pull the Aussie’s up from 6th with her 51.62 to equal 4th as she and Summer McIntosh touched the wall at the same time.

3rd Legs (Flying Start)

Rank/Overall	Swimmer	Nation	Time	Team Position before	Team Position After
1/6	Alexandria Perkins	AUS	51.68	=4	2
2/10	Alex Shackell	USA	52.01	1	1
3/13	Nina Holt	GER	52.21	8	7
4/14	Ingrid Wilm	CAN	52.22	=4	3
5/17	Petra Senanszky	HUN	52.58	7	8
6/18	Chiara Tarantino	ITA	52.63	6	5
7/23	Milana Stepanova	NAB	53.27	2	4
8/24	Hanna Bergman	SWE	53.35	3	6

With the 7th fastest overall split in the field and the only split amongst the third legs under 52.00, Alexandria Perkins pulled the Australians further up through the field as her 51.68 separated them from the Canadian and passed both the Swedes and Neutral Athletes to sit in second place at the conclusion of her swim.

Alex Shackell, best known for her 200-meter fly prowess, swam a strong 52.16 this morning and earned a second swim tonight. The high school senior did not disappoint, pulling out an even faster split of 52.01.

The third legs seems to carry that theme of swimmers swimming outside of their dominant strokes, as in addition to Perkins and Shackell, Canada’s Ingrid Wilm put on an impressive showing. After a 52.97 this morning and safely making the final in the 100 back earlier in the session, Wilm pilled out a swift 52.22 to move past the Neutral Athletes and Sweden and put the Canadians in a medal position.

4th Legs (Flying Start)

Rank/Overall	Swimmer	Nation	Time	Team Position before	Team Position After
1/1	Gretchen Walsh	USA	50.67	1	1
2/9	Minna Abraham	HUN	51.90	8	7
3/11	Penny Oleksiak	CAN	52.01	3	3
4/12	Arina Surkova	NAB	52.14	4	4
5/15	Sofia Aastedt	SWE	52.29	6	6
6/16	Lani Pallister	AUS	52.36	2	2
7/19	Nele Schulze	GER	52.66	7	8
8/21	Emma Virginia Menicccui	ITA	52.71	5	5

While not as fast as her 50.51 this morning, Gretchen Walsh‘s 50.67 was more than enough to secure the win for the Americans and take the World Record. Out in 23.93, the only sub-24 split in the field, Walsh closed on 26.74 to lead the US to a new WR of 3:25.01, besting the previous record set by the Australians in 2022 of 3:25.43.

Hungarian and USC swimmer Minna Abraham posted the 2nd fastest splits amongst the anchors, but was only able to jump over the Germans to secure 7th place.

Penny Oleksiak, an Olympic Champion in the 100 free, produced a strong 52.01 to help keep the Canadians in the medals as the Neutral Athletes B were only .16 back at the 100.