Mewen Tomac Takes Down Men’s 200 Back French Record from 2009 with 1:49.61 in Prelims

2022 FINA SHORT COURSE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

During the last prelims session of the 2022 Short Course World Championships in Melbourne, Australia, Mewen Tomac took down a super-suited French record in the men’s 200 back that had stood untouched since 2009.

The 21-year-old Tomac clocked a time of 1:49.61, shaving .28 seconds off the previous national record that belonged to Benjamin Stasiulis (1:49.89). Tomac also set a new lifetime best by more than half a second, improving upon his 1:50.14 from last month. He and Stasiulis are the only two Frenchmen in history to break the 1:50 barrier.

Tomac is seeded second heading into tonight’s final in between two Americans. Shaine Casas earned the top seed with a 1:49.46 while Ryan Murphy qualified third with a 1:49.71.

Tomac is eyeing his individual medal at a major international meet tonight after taking home a pair of relay medals at the European Championships in August.

MEN’S 200 BACK – PRELIMS

  • World Record: 1:45.63 – Mitch Larkin (AUS), 2015
  • World Junior Record: 1:48.02 – Kliment Kolesnikov (RUS), 2017
  • Championship Record: 1:46.68 – Ryan Lochte (USA), 2010
  • 2021 Champion: 1:48.68 – Radoslaw Kawecki (POL)

Top 8:

  1. Shaine Casas (USA) – 1:49.46
  2. Mewen Tomac (FRA) – 1:49.61
  3. Ryan Murphy (USA) – 1:49.71
  4. Lorenzo Mora (ITA) – 1:49.79
  5. Yohann Ndoye-Brouard (FRA) – 1:50.12
  6. Luke Greenbank (GBR) – 1:50.34
  7. Ryota Naito (JPN) – 1:50.78
  8. Radoslaw Kawecki (POL) – 1:50.97

Tomac’s teammate, fellow Frenchman Yohann Ndoye-Brouard, nearly finished under the old national record as well. The 22-year-old Ndoye-Brouard posted a 1:50.12 to qualify fifth for the final, going .41 seconds faster than his previous best from last year’s Short Course Worlds. It’s the third-fastest time in French history behind Stasiulis and Tomac.

As the splits illustrate below, Ndoye-Brouard took the race out quicker but Tomac caught him just after the midway point of the race.

Splits Comparison, Tomac vs. Ndoye-Brouard

Mewen Tomac, Prelims Yohann Ndoye-Brouard, Prelims
25 12.18 11.95
50 13.33 13.49
75 13.78 13.44
100 13.90 14.13
125 13.96 14.17
150 14.27 14.64
175 14.25 14.48
200 13.94 13.82
Total 1:49.61 1:50.12

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About Riley Overend

Riley is an associate editor interested in the stories taking place outside of the pool just as much as the drama between the lane lines. A 2019 graduate of Boston College, he arrived at SwimSwam in April of 2022 after three years as a sports reporter and sports editor at newspapers …

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