SwimSwam Pulse: 40% Pick W 200 Fly As Longest-Lasting World Record

SwimSwam Pulse is a recurring feature tracking and analyzing the results of our periodic A3 Performance Polls. You can cast your vote in our newest poll on the SwimSwam homepage, about halfway down the page on the right side, or you can find the poll embedded at the bottom of this post.

Our most recent poll asked SwimSwam readers which long course world record would last longest:

RESULTS

Question: Which world record will last longest?

• Women’s 200 fly – 2:01.81 – 40.2%
• Men’s 200 free – 1:42.00 – 38.2%
• Men’s 200 fly – 1:51.51 – 11.3%
• Men’s 200 back – 1:51.92 – 5.6%
• Other – 4.8%

More than 40% of SwimSwam voters selected Liu Zige‘s 2:01.81 in the 200 fly as the current world record that would last the longest, narrowly edging the men’s 200 free (1:42.00 from Paul Biedermann).

Both records came from 2009, the final year before the buoyant, rubberized full-body swimsuits known now as “supersuits” or “bodysuits” were banned for competition.

Zige’s 200 fly seems a natural choice. Since the beginning of 2010, no one has come within 2.25 seconds of the record, with the “textile best” standing at 2:04.06 from the 2012 Olympics. Zige herself never went faster than 2:04.40 after the suit ban.

The men’s 200 free is an interesting case, because while the record is much faster than we see year-to-year in that race these days, it has actually been approached closer than the other records in this poll. Yannick Agnel went 1:43.14 in 2012, coming within 1.1 seconds of Biedermann’s record. The 200 free is still brought up as a tough-to-crack record, though, perhaps in part because of how much faster Biedermann proved to be in a supersuit compared to many other athletes.

Votes for Biedermann’s record nearly matched votes for Zige’s in this poll, despite Zige’s time leading the textile-best by more than double the amount by which Biedermann’s swim tops the corresponding textile best.

In the men’s 200 fly, Michael Phelps was 1:51.51 back in 2009. Since then, no one has been within 1.2 seconds of the record. Kristof Milak has been the closest, going 1:52.71 last year. But Phelps still technically holds the textile-best time with a 1:52.09 from the 2007 World Championships. Though many other swimmers in his heat wore early bodysuits, Phelps wore only a jammer.

Aaron Peirsol was 1:51.92 in the 200 back in 2009. Ryan Lochte holds the textile-best, going 1:52.96 in 2011. Two others have been within a few tenths of Lochte’s time.

Below, vote in our new A3 Performance Poll, which asks voters which new head coaching hire is the best decision:

 Loading ...

ABOUT A3 PERFORMANCE

The A3 Performance Poll is courtesy of A3 Performance, a SwimSwam partner