Fukuoka 2023, Day 1 South America Recap: Costa Takes 4th, Caribe Splits Sizzling 46.76

2023 WORLD AQUATICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

• July 23 to 30, 2023
• Fukuoka, Japan
• Marine Messe Fukuoka
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Central
• SwimSwam Preview Index
• Entry Book
• Live Results (Omega)
• Day 1 Prelims Live Recap | Day 1 Finals Live Recap

SOUTH AMERICA RECAP – DAY 1

This post is focused on recap how South American countries fared on the first day of the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka. For many South American countries at the World Championships, advancing beyond prelims is a great achievement. We also usually see a fairly high volume of national records go down at World Championships.

Brazil has long been the dominant swimming power of South America, and they experienced the most success today as well. Brazil took a relatively small roster to the meet, but they have relays and they have some swimmers who could make some noise.

On day 1 of the meet, Brazil’s Guilherme Costa notched a 4th place finish in the men’s 400 free, speeding to a 3:43.58. It was a very solid swim for Costa, coming in just off his PB of 3:43.31, which also stands as the Brazilian and South American Records in the event. Costa swam that time at last summer’s World Championships in Budapest, where he earned the bronze medal in the event. Though he didn’t win a medal tonight, Costa has become a mainstay in the men’s 400 free finals and is now displaying an ability to consistently put up 3:43s, which has the potential to earn a medal at any given meet.

Joao Gomes also had a decent day for Brazil. Gomes advanced to the semifinal of the men’s 100 breast tonight after finishing 14th in prelims with a 1:00.12. While Gomes didn’t end up finishing in the top 8 in semis tonight, and therefore, moving on to the final, he did drop time from prelims, clocking a 1:00.04 for 15th place.

Brazil had a good showing in the men’s 4×100 free relay tonight After advancing to the final tonight, the Brazilian squad of Marcelo Chierighini, Gui Caribe, Felipe Ribeiro, and Victor Guimaraes teamed up to finish 6th tonight with a 3:12.71. The most notable thing coming out of that relay is that Gui Caribe threw down a blistering 46.76 split on the 2nd leg. His split marked the 2nd-fastest split in the field tonight, and he was 1 of 3 swimmers who split under 47 seconds. Brazil has a very strong history with sprinters, so if Caribe can be a reliable 46-point on relays going forward, that could be a game-changer for Brazil’s relays.

Another very good relay split came in the women’s 4×100 free relay, where Stephanie Balduccini clocked a 53.92 on the 2nd leg. The reason that split is so notable is because it comes in under the Brazilian Record in the women’s 100 free, which is a 54.03 and has stood since 2016. That could mean it’s possible Balduccini takes that record mark down in a few days when the women’s 100 free rolls around.

Brazil also had a strong showing in the women’s 400 free. Gabrielle Roncatto, the Brazilian Record holder in the event (4:06.25), came in 11th this morning with a 4:07.99. It was a strong prelims swim for Roncatto, while teammate Maria Fernanda Costa finished right behind in 12th with a 4:08.67.

NATIONAL RECORDS

There was one national record from a South American country broken on the day. Eduardo Cisternas came in 29th in the men’s 400 free prelims this morning with a 3:53.80. The performance marks a personal best for Cisternas, also taking down the Chilean Record of 3:54.10, which Cisternas himself set back at the Tokyo Olympics in the summer of 2021.