USA’s Mixed Medley World Record Highlights Day 4 Prelims of World Champs

Photo Courtesy: SIPA USA

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Day four prelims of the 2017 FINA World Championships featured a low-key schedule with high intensity racing. One of the top highlights of prelims was the mixed 400 medley relay, featuring a dynamic Team USA and a new World Record of 3:40.28. Additionally, China’s Qin Haiyang posted a new world junior record in the men’s 200 IM, qualifying eighth overall.

PRELIMS RESULTS

Event Schedule:

Women’s 50 back
Men’s 100 free
Women’s 200 fly
Men’s 200 IM
Mixed 400 medley relay

Women’s 50 Back

China’s Fu Yuanhui did not make the final of the women’s 100 back, but she still looks like a big favorite in the 50-meter distance. She pulled well ahead of her heat to touch in 27.21, just 0.15 off the world record of 27.06, set by countrywoman Zhao Jing nine years ago in Rome. Fu also eclipsed her own world-leading time of 27.36.

Fu was four tenths faster than anyone else in prelims, as Belarus’ Aliaksandra Herasimenia and Brazil’s Etiene Medeiros tied for second in 27.65. Fourth went to Great Britain’s Georgia Davies (27.73), and she was followed by Great Britain’s Holly Barratt (27.75), China’s Xueer Wang (27.85) and the USA’s Hannah Stevens (27.89).

Australia’s Emily Seebohm, the bronze medalist in the 100 back Tuesday night, qualified eighth in 27.91, while 100 back silver medalist and American Kathleen Baker was one spot behind in 27.94. Canada’s Kylie Masse, who set a world record on her way to gold in the 100 back, placed 13th in 28.10 to earn her semi-final spot.

Other qualifiers for the semis included Russia’s Anastasiia Fesikova (27.96), Argentina’s Andrea Berrino (27.96), Finland’s Mimosa Jallow (28.05), Poland’s Alicia Tchorz (28.13), the Czech Republic’s Simona Baumrtova (28.15) and Greece’s Theodora Drakou (28.22).

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Men’s 100 Free

Australia’s Cameron McEvoy provided the only swim under 48 seconds in the prelims of the men’s 100 free, checking in with a quick 47.97. That’s just a little bit short of third-ranked season-best time of 47.91.

France’s Mehdy Metella qualified second in 48.18, improving to No. 7 in the world rankings, while the United States’ Caeleb Dressel was third in 48.26. Dressel owns the top-ranked time in the world at 47.26 from his leadoff leg of the American 400 free relay Sunday evening.

Australia’s Jack Cartwright qualified fourth in 48.43, and then there was a four-way tie for fifth place at 48.46 between Japan’s Shinri Shioura, Brazil’s Marcelo Cherighini, the USA’s Nathan Adrian and Great Britain’s Duncan Scott.

Russia’s Danila Izotov and Canada’s Yuri Kisil tied for ninth in 48.56, and they were followed by Ukraine’s Sergii Shevtsov (48.60) and Brazil’s Gabriel Santos (48.64). Belgium’s Pieter Timmers, the Olympic silver medalist in the event last year, was 13th in 48.67.

Also making the semi-finals were Algeria’s Oussama Sahnoune (48.75), Italy’s Ivano Vendrame (48.78) and Serbia’s Velimir Stjepanovic (48.80). Singapore’s Joseph Schooling just missed with a 17th-placed time of 48.86, while a pair of Pac-12 rivals, Trinidad and Tobago’s Dylan Carter (USC) and Hungary’s Richard Bohus (Arizona State) tied for 18th at 48.87.

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Women’s 200 Fly

Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu put up the quickest time in the prelims as she chases her second medal of the week. Hosszu already won gold in the 200 IM Monday night, and she posted a 2:07.25 in the 200 fly to edge out China’s Zhang Yufei (2:07.50) and Spanish Olympic gold medalist Mireia Belmonte (2:07.59).

Another Chinese swimmer, Zhou Yilin, was fourth in 2:07.72, and another Hungarian, Liliana Szilagyi, qualified fifth in 2:07.73.

South Korea’s An Sehyeon and Germany’s Franziska Hentke tied for sixth at 2:08.06, and American Hali Flickinger tied with Italy’s Stefania Pirozzi for eighth in 2:08.84. The USA’s Dakota Luther was the tenths qualifier at 2:08.86.

Australia’s Brianna Throssell qualified 11th in 2:08.98, rounding out the crop of sub-2:09 swimmers, and the remainder of the semi-final qualifiers included Japan’s Suzuka Hasegawa (2:09.10), Italy’s Ilaria Bianchi (2:09.12), Great Britain’s Alys Thomas (2:09.13), Japan’s Hiroko Makino (2:09.14) and Slovenia’s Anja Klinar (2:09.21).

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Men’s 200 IM

Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte have won every single World and Olympic title in the men’s 200 IM since 2003, but in their absence Japan’s Kosuke Hagino has looked like the favorite to win the World title this year. He qualified first in the event’s prelims in 1:56.46, just off his second-ranked time of 1:56.01.

The American who will attempt to fill the shoes of Phelps and Lochte, Chase Kalisz, used a strong breaststroke leg to pull up alongside Hagino in the final heat, and he ended up finishing just behind in 1:56.48, improving on his fourth-ranked time of 1:56.51. Great Britain’s Max Litchfield was third in 1:56.64, posting the No. 5 time in the world rankings.

Japan’s Daiya Seto, seeded first for Wednesday night’s 200 fly final, was fifth in 1:57.55, and he was followed by Switzerland’s Jeremy Desplanches (1:57.59), Australia’s Clyde Lewis (1:58.06) and Germany’s Phillip Heintz (1:58.99).

China’s Qin Haiyang broke the World Junior Record with a time of 1:59.01, qualifying eighth for the semis, while his heralded countryman, Olympic silver medalist Wang Shun, ended up 11th in 1:59.56.

Greece’s Andreas Vazaios was ninth in 1:59.29, and Israel’s Yomar Toumarkin finished 10th in 1:59.49. Also making the semi-finals were American Abrahm DeVine (1:59.65), Great Britain’s Mark Szaranek (1:59.68), Portugal’s Alexis Santos (1:59.69), New Zealand’s Bradlee Ashby (2:00.20) and Italy’s Federico Turrini (2:00.23).

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Mixed 400 Medley Relay

Team USA delivered a strong showing in prelims of the mixed medley relay, loading the relay with three 2016 Olympians and one NCAA Champion.

Ryan Murphy, the world record holder in the men’s 100 back, led the team off with a sharp 52.34 split, before transitioning to breaststroke standout Kevin Cordes. Cordes (58.95) held off a quick-charging Richard Funk (59.04) of Canada to give Kelsi Worrell (56.17) the lead going into the butterfly leg.

Worrell continued to hold the lead, keeping Canada’s Rebecca Smith (57.57) at bay as Mallory Comerford (52.82) dove in as Team USA’s anchor leg. Comerford, who has continually flexed her sprint seed throughout the last year, chased down the world record line and charged past it to stop the clock at a final time of 3:40.28, well under the previous world record of 3:41.71.

The previous world record was set by Great Britain at the 2015 Kazan World Championships.

Australia delivered some outside smoke from heat four to pick up the second place seed, returning tonight with a seed time of 3:44.13, followed closely by Canada’s seed time of 3:44.46.

The Aussies were represented by Kaylee McKeown (1:00.03), Matthew Wilson (59.69), Grant Irvine (51.09), and Shayne Jack (53.32), while the Canadian relay featured Javier Acevedo (54.44), Richard Funk (59.04), Rebecca Smith (57.57), and Chantal van Landeghem (53.41).

Great Britain grabbed a fourth place seed time of 3:44.79, followed by Russia’s seed time of 3:46.09.

China (3:46.25), Italy (3:46.75), and Germany (3:47.66) also qualified for the final heat.

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