Russia’s Yulia Efimova will be favored for a European Championships breaststroke sweep come Thursday evening when she enters the 50 breast final as heavy favorite. After winning gold already in the 100 and 200 breast, Efimova swam a time of 29.66 in the semis, breaking Ruta Meilutyte’s championship record (29.88) from 2014.
Efimova is the third-fastest swimmer in history at 29.52, and she has an outside shot at challenging Lilly King’s world record (29.40) or Meilutyte’s European record (29.48) in the final.
Great Britain’s Imogen Clark, just 19 years old, qualified second in 30.04, and Lithuania’s Meilutyte was third in 30.38. Meilutyte finished just two-hundredths ahead of Italy’s Arianna Castiglioni (30.40).
Also qualifying for the final were Finland’s Ida Hulkko (30.53), Russia’s Natalia Ivaneeva (30.56), Italy’s Martina Carraro (30.70) and Sweden’s Sophie Hansson (30.72).
