2022 JAPAN OPEN
- Thursday, December 1st – Sunday, December 4th
- Tokyo Tatsumi International Swimming Centre
- LCM (50m)
- SwimSwam Preview
- Entries (in Japanese)
- Day 1 Recap/Day 2 Recap/Day 3 Recap
- Start Lists/Results
The 2022 Japan Open wrapped up in Tokyo tonight with world record holder Tomoru Honda back in the pool.
After rocking a big-time 1:52.70 last night to become the 4th fastest 200m butterflier of all time, Honda settled for silver in the 100m distance to close out this competition.
Touching in a time of 51.72, Honda got to the wall .14 behind winner Naoki Mizunuma. 25-year-old Mizunuma clocked a mark of 51.58 to top the 1fly podium, while Yuya Tanaka wrangled up bronze in 51.94.
Mizunuma is the reigning Japanese national record holder, having produced a quick 50.81 in the semi-finals at this summer’s World Championships. That rendered him Japan’s first-ever swimmer to get under the 51-second threshold. Mizunuma ultimately wound up with silver in a time of 50.94.
As for Honda, his result tonight fell just .03 shy of his own personal best of 51.69 from this past March while Tanaka was in the same realm of his 2020 PB of 51.76.
The trio now overtakes the top 3 spots in the season’s world rankings, replacing the previous leader Katsuhiro Matsumoto.
2022-2023 LCM Men 100 Fly
Grousset
50.14
| 2 | Josh Liendo | CAN | 50.34 | 07/29 |
| 3 | Dare Rose | USA | 50.46 | 07/29 |
| 4 | Matthew Temple | AUS | 50.76 | 07/28 |
| 5 | Nyls Korstanje | NED | 50.78 | 07/28 |
Yu Hanaguruma snagged the top prize in the men’s 200m breast, earning gold in a mark of 2:08.86. Opening in 1:02.58 and closing in 1:06.28, Hanaguruma clocked the only sub-2:08 time of the field to beat the pack by nearly a second.
Runner-up status went to former world record holder Ippei Watanabe who touched in 2:09.63 while Olympian Ryuya Mura also landed on the podium with bronze in 2:09.97.
Additional winners included Chihiro Igarashi topping the women’s 50m free event in 25.19, while Shinri Shioura got it done for the men in 22.02.
Kanako Watanabe was the fastest women’s 200m breaststroker tonight, grabbing gold in 2:25.37 while Ai Soma put up a solid 58.24 to take the women’s 100m butterfly.
(Just to show that I always check every result lol) Kanako Watanabe won the 200 br. A final in 2.25.37 but the fastest women’s 200 breaststroker was Runa Imai who won the 200 br. B-final in 2.25.00.