Great Britain Down Russia’s Women’s 4×100 Free Relay EJR With 53.42 Split From Theodora Taylor

2026 EUROPEAN JUNIOR SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, July 7 – Sunday, July 12, 2026
• Munich, Germany
• LCM (50 meters)
• Psych Sheet
• Live Results
• Day 1 Prelims Recap | Day 1 Finals Live Recap

Women’s 400 Free Relay — Final

• World Junior Record: 3:35.53 — United States, 2025
• European Junior Record: 3:37.87 — Russia, 2025
• Meet Record: 3:40.10 — Russia, 2021
• 2025 European Junior Champion: Spain — 3:41.29

Gold: Great Britain — 3:37.35 **New European Junior Record

Silver: Italy — 3:39.36

Bronze: Neutral Athletes — 3:39.36

The British women capped their first night of competition of in Munich on a high note. The squad of Emma Wood, Theodora Taylor, Hannah Capron, and Amalie Smith joined forces for a 3:37.35 victory that erased Russia’s 3:37.87 European Junior Record.

Taylor, the Union Jack’s second leg, stood out as the fastest split of the field and the lone sub-54. She went out in 25.33 before coming home in 28.09 for a final split of 53.42. From a flat start, the 17-year-old’s best sits at 54.20, so this split is significant for her.

Smith on the anchor in 54.17 proved noteworthy as well. This was the third fastest split of the whole heat, and Smith just came off a big 4:35.32 400 IM victory. Not known for her sprinting prowess, the 16-year-old Smith possesses a lifetime best of 57.67 in the 100 free.

Below you can see where GB was able to hack off time from the Russian squad. They carried the record for a little short of a year, earning it at the 2025 World Junior Championships and losing it this evening. Britain leveraged lightning splits from Taylor and Smith to combat Russia’s impressive consistency of 54.4s.