Katinka Hosszu Becomes 1st Woman to Win 4 Straight World Titles in One Event

2019 FINA WORLD AQUATICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

With her win in the 200 IM Monday night in Gwangju, Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu became the first woman to win four straight world titles in a single event.

Hosszu took gold in 2:07.53, over a full second ahead of second-place finisher Ye Shiwen (2:08.60), of China. Canada’s Sydney Pickrem finished third in 2:08.70. Hosszu’s world record sits at 2:06.12 from 2015, and she was 2:07.02 in her prelims swim on night one of the meet.

Other women have come close to winning four consecutive titles: in fact, Swede Sarah Sjostrom came within half a second of completing the feat earlier in the night in the 100 fly, but Canadian Maggie MacNeil pulled off the upset. Katie Ledecky will (almost definitely) win her fourth consecutive titles in the 800 and 1500 free this week.

When it comes to non-consecutive four-time female event winners at Worlds, Hosszu herself has won four 400 IM titles, and Sjostrom has won four 100 fly titles overall.

On the men’s side, American Ryan Lochte won four straight 200 IM world titles from 2009-2015, Australian Grant Hackett won four straight in the 1500 from 1998-2005, and Sun Yang made it four consecutive wins in the 400 free Sunday night (2013-2019).

Lochte also won five consecutive titles in the 800 free relay, and Michael Phelps four in that event. Phelps won five titles overall in the 200 fly, but Pawel Korzeniowski‘s win in 2005 interrupted his consecutive chances.

Great Britain’s Adam Peaty will have a chance at four consecutive wins in the 100 breast in 2021.

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STEPHEN WIERHAKE
5 years ago

What a beast! I mean that as a compliment – she is an amazing athlete.

William Charles Alexander
5 years ago

Thats a great shot of Katinka– look at those muscles! She is truly “Iron Lady”. Arguably the three greatest female swimmers in the world, only Katinka was able to succesfully make that record of 4 individual titles consecutively in the same event– further cements her mantle as *the* best female swimmer of all time imo. Sjostrom and Ledecky succumbed to the pressure of 2 precocious teens in Titmus and Macneil.

Rafael
Reply to  William Charles Alexander
5 years ago

Ledecky will probably win the 1500.. the 800 not so sure..

Texas Tap Water
5 years ago

The greatest female IMer ever!

Queen Katinka!

Ol' Longhorn
Reply to  Texas Tap Water
5 years ago

IMer period. No one — male or female unless you count Phelocte — has held onto 200 and 400 IM supremacy for as long as she has. 8 of the 10 best all-time performances in the 200 IM, and 6 of the 10 best in the 400. Holds both WRs.

Steve
5 years ago

Katinka rocks!

Coach Mike 1952
5 years ago

Congratulations Katinka. Not to diminish for a second what the Iron lady just did, but USA announcers kept saying say Sarah S would have won her 5th straight in 100 fly. NOT. It would have been her 4th straight, though 5th overall.

Boknows34
Reply to  Coach Mike 1952
5 years ago

Sjostrom won in 2009, 13, 15 and 17, and was fourth in 2011 behind Dana Vollmer.

Coach Mike 1952
Reply to  Boknows34
5 years ago

yup!

Coach Mike 1952
Reply to  Coach Mike 1952
5 years ago

Thanks for the correction.

Riez
5 years ago

The Medley Queen

About Torrey Hart

Torrey Hart

Torrey is from Oakland, CA, and majored in media studies and American studies at Claremont McKenna College, where she swam distance freestyle for the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps team. Outside of SwimSwam, she has bylines at Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, SB Nation, and The Student Life newspaper.

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