Abbey Webb of Australia Hits 200 Free PB To Begin 2024 Japan Open

2024 JAPAN OPEN

• Friday, November 29th – Sunday, December 2nd
• Tokyo Aquatic Centre, Tokyo, Japan
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Day one of the 2024 Japan Open unfolded today from the Tokyo Aquatic Centre, site of the 2020 Olympic Games.

Genki Terakado, who represented Japan in Paris this summer, produced a time of 1:55.43 to lead the men’s 200m fly.

The 21-year-old beat the field by over a second, with 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Championships gold medalist Ei Kamikawabata next to the wall in 1:56.45 followed by Takumi Terada who touched in 1:56.60.

Terakado has been as quick as 1:54.07 in his career, a time he logged at this year’s Olympic Trials. At the Games, the first-time Olympian placed 15th overall with a semi-final swim of 1:56.21 after turning in 1:55.82 in the heats.

Veteran Reona Aoki got it done for gold in the women’s 100m breast, registering 1:07.78 to hold a narrow advantage over runner-up Kotomi Kato.

Kato settled for silver just .03 behind in 1:07.81 while visiting Australian teenager Sienna Toohey rounded out the podium in 1:08.02.

Toohey, just 15 years of age, owns a personal best of 1:07.01 from the Australian Olympic Trials this past June.

Another Aussie, Abbey Webb, got on the board big time in the women’s 200m freestyle.

23-year-old Webb, formerly of Auburn and NC State in the NCAA, posted a winning effort of 1:56.68 to set herself apart from the field by nearly 2 seconds.

Opening in 57.60 and closing in 59.08, Webb scorched a new lifetime best with tonight’s effort, overtaking her previous fastest swim of 1:57.77 scored at this year’s Olympic Trials. She now checks in among the top 20 Aussie women’s 200m freestylers in history in slot #16.

Jaimie De Lutiis, also of Australia, notched 1:58.43 as tonight’s silver medalist and Olympian Nagisa Ikemoto of the host nation logged 2:00.40 for bronze.

Additional Winners

• The men’s 100m breast final was void of anyone dipping under the minute barrier, as Hayato Watanabe produced 1:00.11 for gold, followed by Yu Hanaguruma (1:00.19) and Ippei Watanabe (1:00.35) who earned respective silver and bronze.
• Chiho Mizuguchi turned in a winning time of 2:10.36 to take gold in the women’s 200m fly.
• Tomoko Takeba got the job done in the women’s 100m back in 1:01.29.
• Olympian Hidekazu Takehara hit 54.61 to top the men’s 100m backstroke podium.