Kylie Masse\u2019s<\/strong> ascendance to the elite level of women\u2019s sprint backstroke was rapid and nothing short of stunning. It was just getting over the world record hump that that took a little bit longer.<\/p>\n

Two years after she didn\u2019t qualify for Canada\u2019s top international teams, the World Championships and Pan American Games, Masse showed up to this year\u2019s Canadian Trials in April as the co-Olympic bronze medalist in the women\u2019s 100 back. Going for a spot on her first World Championships team, she promptly put up the third-fastest performance ever in that event and barely missed the world record.<\/p>\n

Masse swam a time of 58.21, the fastest 100 back time ever recorded in a textile suit and just nine hundredths off Gemma Spofforth\u2019s<\/strong> eight-year-old global record. She arrived in\u00a0Budapest as the pre-race favorite, and in the semi-finals, she made another run at the record\u2026 only to come even closer but still fall short.<\/p>\n

$\"kylie$
Photo Courtesy: SIPA USA<\/p><\/div>\n
Masse\u2019s semi-final time was 58.18. Now, she was just six hundredths off the world record. Where could she find that little bit extra?<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s just those really small details,\u201d Masse said after her semi-final swim. \u201cThe 100 is such a quick race, and the smallest thing can sometimes hinder or improve.\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
In the 24 hours between the 100 back semi-finals and final, the world record watch was on.<\/p>\n
Spofforth had set her record at the 2009 World Championships in Rome\u00a0while wearing a suit that contained polyurethane and was soon to be banned. But\u00a0most of the world records set during the 2009 onslaught have since been broken, and Spofforth\u2019s 100 back was one of just five women\u2019s individual records from that year that remained heading into the World Championships.<\/p>\n
Australia\u2019s Emily Seebohm<\/strong>, who at the start of the year owned the fastest-ever time in textile suit at 58.23, was ready for someone to crack the record. After her semi-final swim, she said, \u201cWe\u2019ve been close for so long, so it\u2019d be good to see it go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Among the others hoping that Masse would make up those last few hundredths: Spofforth, who sent her good luck to Masse on Twitter.<\/p>\n
\n
\n
@Kjmasse<\/a> 58.18… Love watching some fast swimming!!! Good luck tomorrow. Fast, faster, fastest! \ud83d\udc4d\ud83c\udffc<\/p>\n
— Gemma Spofforth (@GemmaSpofforth) July 24, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n