Leah Hayes Breaks Her Own 200 IM WUGs Record With 2:09.48, Her Fastest Since 2022

2025 World University Games

• July 17th-23rd, 2025
  • Prelims: 9 a.m. local time (3 a.m. EST)
  • Finals: 7 p.m. local time (1 p.m. EST)
• Berlin, Germany
• LCM (50 Meters)
• Meet Central
• Entries List
• Live Results
• Livestream
• Live Recaps
  • Prelims: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6
  • Finals: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6

WOMEN’s 200 IM – FINAL

• World Record: 2:05.70 – Summer McIntosh , CAN (2025)
• World Junior Record: 2:06.56 – Summer McIntosh, CAN (2024)
• World University Games Record: 2:10.01– Leah Hayes, USA (2025)

Top 8 Finishers:

1. Leah Hayes (USA)- 2:09.48 *NEW MEET RECORD*
2. Teagan O’Dell (USA)- 2:11.24
3. Ashley McMillan (CAN)- 2:12.63
4. Chiara Della Corte (ITA)- 2:13.03
5. Iana Shakirova (AIN)- 2:14.13
6. Camille Tissandie (FRA)- 2:14.62
7. Rio Sato (JPN)- 2:15.31
8. Ge Chutong (CHN)- 2:17.28

Leah Hayes is simply on fire at the World University Games in Berlin. The 19-year-old picked up her fourth gold medal of the meet in tonight’s 200 IM, touching the wall in 2:09.48 to lower her own meet record from the semifinals. Her result also checks in as the second-fastest outing of the Virginia Cavalier’s career.

Her other gold medals this meet come from the 4×100 and 4×200 free relays, and the 400 IM. Hayes won the longer IM race in 4:36.04, improving on her 2023 best time of 4:36.84, and produced her first-ever sub-1:58 swim in the 200 free (1:57.87) on the relay lead-off leg.

She swam a very strong race tonight, with most of her improvement from yesterday coming in the first 100, where she split 1:00.95 to turn in 2nd place after the backstroke. Yesterday, she was 1:01.48.

She had the fastest 50 breaststroke in the field, splitting 37.48 to take over the lead by almost two seconds going into the freestyle leg. On the final 50, she was 31.05 to lock up the gold medal and the WUGs record.

Teagan O’Dell took 2nd in 2:11.24, clipping her best time from last month, where she took 6th at the U.S. Trials in 2:11.25. She led for the first 100 of the race, splitting 1:00.28. She struggled on the breaststroke leg, swimming 40.20 to drop back into 3rd. She made up that ground with a very strong final 50, splitting 30.76 to be the only sub-31 swimmer in the field and earn the silver medal.

Ashley McMillan rounded out the North American podium, touching 3rd in 2:12.63 for Canada. She owns a best time of 2:11.00 in this event.

Hayes broke onto the scene at the 2022 U.S. International Team Trials, where she logged 2:09.99 for 2nd place behind Alex Walsh, qualifying for the World Championships in Budapest. At Worlds, she posted a personal-best 2:09.81 in the heats before nearly matching that result with a time of 2:09.82, then had the swim of her life to take bronze in the final with her current career best of 2:08.91.

She went on to miss the 2023 Worlds team but found herself improving in the 400 IM. She hit the wall 4th in the 200 IM (2:10.83) at the World Trials and recorded a lifetime-best 4:38.45 in the 400 IM, dropping from her 4:39.36 best for 3rd.

In 2024, after finishing her senior year of high school, she was 32nd in the 200 free (2:00.38), 33rd in the 200 breast (2:33.15), 5th in the 200 IM (2:11.81), and 5th in the 400 IM (4:41.32) at the U.S. Olympic Trials.

She has turned a page in a big way this year, building momentum with personal bests in the short course yards pool during her freshman campaign with Virginia.

In the long course pool, she has really focused on the breaststroke races, turning in lifetime bests of 1:08.51 and 2:27.60 at the U.S. World Trials last month. She also posted a sub-2:11 time of 2:10.83 in the 200 IM for 4th and got back under 4:40 in the 400 IM (4:38.46) for 3rd. She also produced an equal best time of 1:58.19 at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Swim Series prior to the meet. She didn’t swim that race at U.S. Nationals due to its conflict with the 200 breast, where she finished 5th.