2023 WORLD AQUATICS CHAMPIONSHIPS
- July 23 to 30, 2023
- Fukuoka, Japan
- Marine Messe Fukuoka
- LCM (50m)
- WORLD CHAMPS WATCH PARTY – DAILY
- Meet Central
- SwimSwam Preview Index
- Entry Book
- Live Results (Omega)
- Day 1 Prelims Live Recap | Day 1 Finals Live Recap
- Day 2 Prelims Live Recap | Day 2 Finals Live Recap
Day two of the 2023 World Championships saw China bust out with two golds, one on the men’s and one on the women’s side.
Qin Haiyang produced the fastest time of his career en route to claiming 100m breaststroke gold. The 24-year-old got to the wall in a scathing 57.69 to become the 2nd-fastest man ever in the event.
Zhang Yufei followed suit by topping the women’s 100m fly podium. The Olympic multi-medalist put up a mark of 56.12, beating out reigning Olympic champion Maggie MacNeil of Canada in the process.
Finally, Yu Yiting bagged the bronze in the women’s 200m IM to close out the suspenseful night of action.
As successful as China has been, the nation of Japan is still trying to find its spark.
Yes, Daiya Seto bagged the bronze last night in the men’s 400m IM; however, tonight double Olympic champion Yui Ohashi placed just 6th in the 200m IM and 2019 World Championships bronze medalist Katsuhiro Matsumoto was beaten in the swim-off for the 8th slot in the men’s 200m freestyle final.
As another blow to Japan, remarkably for the first long course World Championships since 2007, national record holder Ryosuke Irie will not be appearing in the men’s 100m backstroke final.
33-year-old Irie placed just 18th out of this morning’s heats, hitting a time of 53.98. That’s despite the racing mainstay entering these Championships ranked 10th in the world with his season-best of 52.93 logged in January.
Below are Irie’s results from the past 14 years at long course World Championships as a testament to his longevity and consistency, despite falling short here in Fukuoka.
Ryosuke Irie‘s Long Course World Championships Results All-Time
| Year | Place | Time |
| 2009 | 4th | 52.73 |
| 2011 | 3rd | 52.98 |
| 2013 | 4th | 53.29 |
| 2015 | 6th | 53.10 |
| 2017 | 4th | 53.03 |
| 2019 | 6th | 53.22 |
| 2022 | 7th | 52.83 |
| 2023 | 18th | 53.98 |
National/Continental Records Through Day 2:
- China
- Qin Haiyang – 57.69 men’s 100m breaststroke Asian Record
- Women’s 4x100m free relay – 3:32.40 Asian Record
- Men’s 4x100m free relay – 3:11.38 Asian Record
- Hong Kong
- Women’s 4x100m free relay – 3:39.93
- Kyrgyzstan
- Denis Petrashov – 59.78 men’s 100m breaststroke
- South Korea
- Choi Dong-yeol – 59.59 men’s 100m breaststroke
- Back In-chul – 23.50 men’s 50m butterfly
Medal Table (Asia) Through Day 2:
| Rank | Country | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | China | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| 2 | Japan | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
