World Championships: Italy’s Newly Crowned World Champion Benedetta Pilato Chasing Breaststroke Double

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STROKED: Italy's Benedetta Pilato chasing a slice of breaststroke history. Photo Courtesy: Andrea Staccioli / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto

Newly Crowned World Champion Benedetta Pilato Chasing Rare Breaststroke Double v South African Lara van Niekerk

Italy’s newly crowned world champion Benedetta Pilato will be chasing a rare slice of breaststroke history in Budapest tomorrow night.

The 17-year-old from Taranto became the first Italian woman to win a world breaststroke title when she took the 100m crown in 1:05.93 earlier in the week.

And now the world record holder in the 50m breaststroke will be looking to win her pet event after clocking 29.80, the second fastest time into tonight’s semi-finals (and half a second outside her 2021 world mark of 29.30) after this morning’s heats behind South Africa’s Commonwealth record holder Lara van Niekerk in 29.77.

Victory in the 50m final will see Pilato join both China’s Luo Xuejuan (2001 and 2003) and the USA’s Lilly King (2017 and 2019) as the only swimmers to have won the sprint double since the 50m form strokes were added to the FINA World’s program in Fukuoka in 2001.

King, who won the 200m gold last night, will also race the final, qualifying in equal ninth with Fleur Vermeiren (Netherlands) in 30.70.

Others in the top eight are Estonia’s Eneli Jefimova (30.08), Germany’s Anna Elendt (30.12), China’s Qianting Tang (30.36), Brazil’s Jhennifer Conceicao (30.53), Sweden’s Sophie Hansson (30.64) and Veeera Kivirinta (30.66).

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