Gabrielle Assis Breaks Oldest Brazilian Women’s Record with 2:26.38 200 Breast

2023 PRO SWIM SERIES – WESTMONT

• April 12-15, 2023
• FMC Aquatic Center, Westmont, Illinois
• Long Course Meters (50 meters)
• Event Central
• Pre-Scratch timeline
• Psych Sheets
• Live Stream
• Live Results
• Day 1 Finals Live Recap
• Day 2 Prelims Live Recap
• Day 2 Finals Live Recap
• Day 3 Prelims Live Recap
• Day 3 Finals Live Recap

Gabrielle Assis may have missed the podium in Friday night’s women’s 200 breaststroke final, but the Brazilian standout came away from the Pro Swim Series stop in Westmont with something even more significant than hardware.

Assis clocked a 2:26.38 to shave over a second off Carolina Mussi‘s previous Brazilian record of 2:27.42 that she swam way back in May of 2009. The mark, which stood untouched for nearly 14 years, was the oldest Brazilian women’s record on the books and the nation’s oldest long-course standard on either the men’s or women’s side.

Steadily dropping time over the past four years, Assis went from 2:30.60 in 2019 to 2:28.53 in 2021 (she didn’t swim the event in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic). This year, she has improved by another second-plus compared to her 2:27.82 from last year.

Next up for Assis is achieving the World Championships ‘A’ cut of 2:25.91, lowering the South American record of 2:24.92 set by Argentina’s Julia Sebastian in 2009, and earning a Paris 2024 Olympic ‘A’ cut of 2:23.91.

Friday’s Brazilian record by Assis also represented the country’s second national record of the year following Beatriz Dizotti‘s 16:04.21 1500 free last month.

WOMEN’S 200 BREASTSTROKE – FINAL

• World Record: 2:18.95 – Tatjana Schoenmaker (2021)
• American Record: 2:19.59 – Rebecca Soni (2012)
• Pro Swim Series Record: 2:20.77 – Annie Lazor (2022)
• US Open Record:  2:20.38 – Rebecca Soni (2009)

Top 8:

1. Lilly King – 2:23.68
2. Anna Elendt – 2:24.74
3. Annie Lazor – 2:25.71
4. Gabrielle Assis de Silva – 2:26.38
5. Lydia Jacoby – 2:26.57
6. Anastasya Gorbenko – 2:29.19
7. Alexis Yager – 2:30.48
8. Letitia Sim – 2:30.64

Lilly King, the reigning Olympic silver medalist, led from wire to wire in this race and triumphed with a time of 2:23.68, more than a second ahead of Texas junior Anna Elendt. King, 26, was a few tenths off her season-best 2:23.33 from last month, which ranks fifth in the world this season.

Annie Lazor got off to a slow start, sitting back in seventh place at the midway point and fifth place heading into the final turn before flying home in 37.00 to finish in third place with a 2:25.71. Lydia Jacoby was out quick in third place at the halfway point before fading to fifth place with a 2:26.57 behind Assis.