Regan Smith Breaks 200 Fly American Record For Silver Medal In Budapest (2:01.00)

2024 Short Course World Championships

• December 10-15, 2024
• Duna Arena, Budapest, Hungary
• SCM (25m)
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Fresh off qualifying for the women’s 50 backstroke final, Regan Smith earned silver in the women’s 200 butterfly in an American record 2:01.00. Smith practiced similarly tough doubles during the 2024 World Cup circuit and though she had less than 20 minutes between her swims, she swam a 2:01.00, lowering the American record Kelsi Dahlia swam in 2018 by .73 seconds.

Though Smith was well ahead of the American record pace at both the 50-meter and 100-meter mark, she was out of medal contention at that point in the race, highlighting the way that the current wave of swimmers, particularly teenagers Summer McIntosh and Alex Shackell, prefer to attack the 200 butterfly from the start of the race.

Smith used the back 100 meters to pull herself into the medal conversation. Though she was fourth at the 100, by the 150-meter mark she had swum herself into third behind McIntosh and Shackell. Her 31.43 closing split was enough to pull her ahead of Shackell and earn the silver medal.

Split Comparison, American Records:

Smith narrowly missed Dahlia’s American record in Shanghai, when she swam her former lifetime best 2:01.85. In the Budapest final, she didn’t leave any doubt about going under Dahlia’s mark, as she out-split Dahlia’s pace on each 50. She now owns the 200 butterfly American record in long-course meters, short-course meters, and short-course yards.

This silver medal completes Smith’s medal set at the 2024 Short Course World Championships. Over the first two days of racing, she won gold in the women’s 100 backstroke and helped the United States earn bronze in the mixed 4×50 medley relay. Tomorrow, she’ll be in medal contention again during the women’s 50 backstroke final, where she qualified in second behind her teammate Katharine Berkoff.