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2022 FINA WORLD WATER CHAMPIONSHIPS
It’s time for the final session of the 2022 World Aquatics Championships. Day 8 of racing is upon us and will feature the last 7 finals of this meeting. We start with the men’s 50m backstroke and the women’s 50m breaststroke, followed by the men’s 1500m freestyle. Then the sprint action starts again with the women’s 50 Freestyle final. The final individual event of the session is the women’s 400m IM, and then we round out the meeting with two 4×100 medley relays.
DAY 8 LEFT
50 world record holders in backstroke and 50 in breaststroke will start us as world record holders Hunter Armstrong and Benedetta Pilato participate in their respective sprint events. In the backstroke, Armstrong is number 2 on the way to the finals to teammate Justin Ress but 100 backstroke outstanding Thomas Cecon and Apostolus Christou will flank the Americans and fight for a place on the podium. In the 50 breaststroke, Olympic champion 2012 Ruta Meluttyte will be looking for a chance to get back on the podium this week after taking bronze in the 50 breaststroke. Former world record holder Lili King is out of the pool at this event after swimming a 30.35 in the semifinals.
We’ll see familiar faces in the men’s 1500m freestyle, including Olympic champions Bobby Finke, Mykhailo Romanchukand Florian Wellbrock. Bobby Finke could take his second gold of the meet, but the field will certainly be primed for his signature strategy of overtaking his rivals in the final 50 yards.
As for the 50 freestyle, we’ll see if we’re top seeded Kasia Wasick can here after her swim from 24.11. win a medal for Poland in the semifinals. Sarah Sjostrom, Torri Huske, Zhang Yufei, Erica Brown, Julie Kepp Jensen, Anna Hopkinsand meg harris However, everyone swam between 24:15 and 24:86 on the second lap of the race, meaning it’s likely to be a close race.
Katie Grimes and Summer McIntosh put on a nice race in the middle of the pool in the women’s 400m final. Grimes and McIntosh raced in the heats and finished less than a second apart, making them the favorites to finish in the top 2 tonight. but Katinka Hosszu, one of the most successful 400 IMers in history, will not go down with a fight. She hasn’t been at her best in recent years but it will be interesting to see if a swim in front of a home crowd can give her the boost she needs to reach the podium.
Yui Ohashi is expected to beat her 13th place finish at the 200 IM earlier this week, but it’s unclear if she can win gold here like she did in Tokyo. Keep an eye out for her with China Ge Chutong and United States Emma Weyant. We then wrap up the session with the men’s and women’s 4×100 medley relays, which feature the USA and Australia as respective top seeds. Follow here for all the live results and analysis you need.
Read a full preview of the session here.
SWIMSWAM WATCH PARTY
MEN’S 50 RETURN – SEMIFINALS
- World record: 23.71, Hunter Armstrong (USA) – 2022 US Studies
- Championship record: 4/24, Liam Tancock (GBR) – 2009 World Championships
- World Champion 2019: Zane Waddell (RSA), 24.43
- Hunter Armstrong (USA) – 24.14
- Ksawery Masiuk (POL) – 24.49
- Thomas Cecon (ITA) – 24.51
- Apostolus Christou (GRE) / Robert Glinta (ROU) – 24.57
- Ole Braunschweig (GER) – 24.66
- Isaac Alan Cooper (AUS) – 24.76
- Justin Ress (USA) – DQ
After winning the world title with a 24.12 and making his way to the interview area, it was announced Justin Ress had been disqualified from the men’s 50+ backstroke final. He set one of the fastest times in history but was then eliminated and made it Hunter Armstrong the master.
Armstrong’s time of 24.14 was enough to win the event, but was slightly slower than his world record and lifetime time of 23.71 from the 2022 US World Champ Trials. Armstrong was just 0.02 seconds faster than his semi-final swim after beating a 24.16 in the second round.
Poland’s Kswaery Masiuk touched third place but considering the DQ he will take the silver medal here with his 24.49 swim. Masiuk was just shy of his own Polish record in this event of 24.48 from earlier in the meeting. He was accompanied on the podium by Thomas Cecon from Italy, who scored a 24.51 for the bronze medal. This is Armstrong and Ceccon’s second individual medal at the meet, as the duo took bronze and gold, respectively, in the 100 backstroke.
Apostolus Christou and Robert Glinta shared 4th place here, both swimming a 24.57 and Ole Braunschweig of Germany batted a 24.66 for 7th place. Seventh overall went to Australian Isaac Alan Cooper in 24.76.
WOMEN 50 BREAST BEAT – SEMIFINALS
- World record: 29.30, Benedetta Pilato (ITA) – European Championship 2021
- Championship record: 29.40, Lili King (USA) – 2017
- World Champion 2019: Lili King (USA) – 29.81
- Ruta Meluttyte (LTU) – 29.70
- Benedetta Pilato (ITA) – 29.80
- Lara van Niekerk (RSA) – 20.90
- Qianting Tang (CHN) – 30.21
- Anna Elendt (GER) – 30.22
- Eneli Efimova (EST) – 30.25
- Lili King (USA) – 30.40
- Jennifer Alves de Conceicao (BRA) – 30.45
Almost 10 years after winning her first world title in 2013, Lithuania’s Rute Meilutyte managed to win the 50m breaststroke at the 2022 World Championships. Meilutyte overtook the field in 29.70 to slightly improve on her semifinal swim of 29.97 but fell short of her lifetime best and national record of 29.48 set in 2013.
This is Melutyte’s first long-distance world title at the event, as she took silver against Yuliya Efimova in 2013. Meilutyte won a bronze medal in the women’s 100m breaststroke earlier this week, marking her first major international medal since she returned to the sport last year.
He was the world record holder at 0.10 seconds after Meilutyte’s winning time Benedetta Pilato with 29.80. Pilato broke the world record in that event at the 2021 European Championships with 29.30 but was behind that time here, swimming half a second slower.
African record holder Lara van Niekerk was the only other woman to crack 30 seconds here, posting 29.90 for bronze. She broke the African record earlier this year with a 29.72 but still had enough in her to make the podium here. This is the first medal ever won by a swimmer from an African country in this competition.
Qianting Tang came in fourth with 30.21, closely followed by the sole competitor from the United States Lili King swam a 30.22 for 5th place.
MEN 1500 FREESTYLE
- World Record: Sun Yang – 14:31.02 (2012)
- Championship record: Sun Yang – 14:34.14 (2011)
- Olympic champion 2021: Bobby Finke – 14:39.65
- World Champion 2019: Florian Wellbrock (DE) – 14:36.54
WOMEN 50 FREESTYLE – SEMIFINALS
- World record: 23.67, Sarah Sjostrom (SWE) – World Championships 2017
- Championship record: 23.67, Sarah Sjostrom (SW) – 2017
- Olympic Champion 2021: Emma McKeon (AUS), 23.81
- World Champion 2019: Simone Manuel (USA), 24.05
WOMEN 400 IM – PRELIMINARIES
MEN’S 4×100 MEDLEY RELAY – PRELIMINARY
- World record: 3:26.78, USA (2021)
- World record: 3:27.28, USA (2009)
- Tokyo 2020 Olympic Champion: USA – 3:26.78
- 2019 World Champions: Great Britain – 3:28.10
WOMEN’S 4×100 MEDLEY RELAY – PRELIMINARIES
- World record: 3:50.40, USA (2019)
- World record: 3:50.40, USA (2019)
- Tokyo 2020 Olympic Champion: Australia – 3:51.60
- 2019 World Champions: USA – 3:50.40
