Popovici, Jefimova, Schwarz, And Siskos Headline Loaded European U23 Psych Sheets

2025 EUROPEAN U23 SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Thursday, June 26 – Saturday, June 28
• X-bionic® sphere Pool, Šamorín, Slovakia
• LCM (50m)
• Start Times – Local: Prelims – 9:30 am / Finals – 6:00 pm
• Start Times – EST: Prelims – 2:30 am / Finals – 11:00 am
• Meet Central
• Psych Sheet
• Entries (by country)
• Live Results
• Livestream (Pay-To-Watch)

The 2025 European U23 Championships are set to commence tomorrow, Thursday, June 26, and run through Saturday, June 28, in Šamorín, Slovakia. The meet features a deep field of both current and rising swimming stars from across the continent.

The clear headliner is David Popovici, the former world record holder in the 100 freestyle and reigning Olympic champion in the 200 free, who also won silver in the 100 free at the Paris Games. He’ll compete in his signature events: the 50, 100, and 200 free.

Popovici, less hesitant than most elite swimmers to compete at multiple international meets in close succession, currently sits 4th in the world in the 100 free (47.30) and 6th in the 200 free (1:45.07), courtesy of his wins at the Romanian Nationals in April. Around this time last year, he posted times of 46.88 and 1:43.13 at the European Championships—just a month before Paris—coming close to his personal bests of 46.86 and 1:42.97. The timing then was similar to how far out we are from Worlds in Singapore now, so we may be in for some near-record swims.

Germany’s Sven Schwarz, the current world leader in the 800 free, will take on both the 800 and 1500 events. Meanwhile, Vladyslav Bukhov of Ukraine, the 2024 world champion in the 50 free, will contest his specialty event along with the 50 fly.

Lana Pudar, a UVA commit and reigning World Junior champion in both the 100 and 200 fly, will focus exclusively on those two events, opting not to contest the 50 fly.

Estonian breaststroke star Eneli Jefimova enters in top form, and she’ll contest all three breaststroke distances. She’s posted national records in each this season: 29.83 (50), 1:05.81 (100), and 2:25.59 (200). Her 50 breast time ranks her #1 in the world, and her 100 breast ranks 5th globally, with most international trials meets already completed.

Roos Vanotterdijk of Belgium will compete in the 50 and 100 of every stroke except breaststroke. Notably, she’s skipping the 200 IM, despite recently demolishing her national record in the event by nearly four seconds with a 2:09.73 win at the French Championships.

Portugal’s Diogo Ribeiro, who claimed double sprint fly gold at the Doha Worlds last year, will contest both butterfly sprints along with the 50 and 100 free.

Other stars to watch include the Chmielewski twins from Poland, both 200 fly specialists. One of the twins won silver at the 2023 World Championships and placed 4th in Paris last summer. Their compatriot Ksawery Masiuk, a backstroke standout, is the favorite in the 50 and 100 back, though he’ll be challenged in the 200 by Greece’s Apostolos Siskos (1:54.66 PB) and Ukrainian NC State freshman Oleksandr Zheltiakov, who’s posted a 1:55.39 in his young career.

Key Entries (not a comprehensive list):

• David Popovici (Romania): 50 Free, 100 Free, 200 Free
• Rebecca Diaconescu (Romania): 200 Free, 400 Free, 800 Free, 1500 Free
• Vladyslav Bukhov (Ukraine): 50 Free, 50 Fly
• Oleksandr Zheltiakov (Ukraine): 50 Back, 100 Back, 200 Back
• Krzysztof Chmielewski (Poland): 200 Fly, 200 Free
• Michal Chmielewski (Poland): 50 Fly, 100 Fly, 200 Fly
• Justina Kozan (Poland): 100 Free, 200 Free, 400 IM
  • Formerly represented Team USA, but has confirmed to SwimSwam that she is representing Poland moving forward. 
• Ksawery Masiuk (Poland): 50 Back, 100 Back, 200 Back, 100 Fly, 100 Free
• Lana Pudar (Bosnia & Herzegovina): 100 Fly, 200 Fly
• Petar Mitsin (Bulgaria): 200 Free, 400 Free, 800 Free
• Roos Vanotterdijk (Belgium): 50 Fly, 100 Fly, 50 Back, 100 Back, 50 Free, 100 Free
• Eneli Jefimova (Estonia): 50 Breast, 100 Breast, 200 Breast
• Diogo Ribeiro (Portugal): 50 Fly, 100 Fly, 50 Free, 100 Free
• Antonio Djakovic (Switzerland): 100 Free, 200 Free, 400 Free, 800 Free
• Cedric Buessing (Germany): 200 Back, 200 IM, 400 IM
• Sven Schwarz (Germany): 800 Free, 1500 Free
• Apostolos Siskos (Greece): 100 Back, 200 Back, 200 Fly
• Honey Osrin (Great Britain): 100 Back, 200 Back
• Nikolett Padar (Hungary): 100 Fly, 200 Fly
• Milou van Wijk (Netherlands): 50 Free, 100 Free
• Kotryna Teterevkova (Lithuania): 50 Breast, 100 Breast, 200 Breast
• Clara Rybak-Andersen (Denmark): 50 Breast, 100 Breast, 200 Breast, 200 IM

Event Schedule: