Friday, July 28, 2023
#AQUAFukuoka23: World Aquatics Championships – Pool Day 7 Preview
The pool competition of the World Aquatics Championships Fukuoka 2023 continues to Day 7 in the U.S. time zones (Saturday morning in Japan) with another slate of exciting swims on the docket.
Here’s a closer look at the athletes entering tonight’s prelims session:
Women 50m Freestyle
Abbey Weitzeil and Gretchen Walsh both posted personal bests at the Phillips 66 National Championships to qualify for this meet and hold the second- and fourth-fastest times in the world (24.00 and 24.31 respectively) this year.
Men 50m Backstroke
This race may be the closest watched of the meet after the fireworks during last year’s world championships. Justin Ress and Hunter Armstrong return to defend their gold/silver medal performances and hope to be the first to win consecutive world titles for the U.S. in this event. Ress and Armstrong currently hold the fastest and third-fastest times in the world this year (24.10 and 24.16 respectively).
Women 50m Breaststroke
Though the U.S. was absent from the podium in 2019, but Lilly King and Lydia Jacoby are poised to change that this year with the second- and third-fastest times in the world this year (29.77 and 29.81 respectively). If King won gold, she would become the first three-time world champion in event history.
Men 1500m Freestyle
Both athletes competed in this event at last year’s world championships with Bobby Finke winning silver and Charlie Clark finishing 10th. U.S. seeking first World Championships gold medal in the event since Tim Shaw in 1975.
Watch Day 7 prelims on Peacock at 9:30 p.m. ET tonight and semifinals/finals at 7:00 a.m. ET tomorrow. The morning’s session will feature semifinals in the women’s 50m freestyle, the women’s 50m breaststroke and the men’s 50m backstroke. Finals will include the women’s 50m butterfly, the men’s 50m freestyle, the men’s 100m butterfly, the women’s 200m backstroke, the women’s 800m freestyle and the mixed 4x100m medley relay.
More than 1,110 swimmers from 192 countries and the World Aquatics Refugee Team have descended on the city of Fukuoka, Japan to compete in the swimming portion of the 20th edition of these world championships. The World Aquatics Swimming Championships medal table, sorted by federation and by athlete, can be found here.
Keep up with all the latest USA Swimming news by following @usaswimming on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Check out our News Notebook which details programs, athletes and clubs that have made the headlines.
Here’s a closer look at the athletes entering tonight’s prelims session:
Women 50m Freestyle
Abbey Weitzeil and Gretchen Walsh both posted personal bests at the Phillips 66 National Championships to qualify for this meet and hold the second- and fourth-fastest times in the world (24.00 and 24.31 respectively) this year.
- Abbey Weitzeil (Santa Clarita, Calif./California Aquatics) and Gretchen Walsh (Nashville, Tenn./Nashville Aquatic Club/University of Virginia)
- Weitzeil went 24.00 – just 0.03 seconds off the American record – at the Phillips 66 National Championships.
- U.S. has only won one gold in the event since Amy Van Dyken’s gold in 1998.
- Walsh swims her first international 50m freestyle since she won gold in the event at the 2019 World Junior Championships.
Men 50m Backstroke
This race may be the closest watched of the meet after the fireworks during last year’s world championships. Justin Ress and Hunter Armstrong return to defend their gold/silver medal performances and hope to be the first to win consecutive world titles for the U.S. in this event. Ress and Armstrong currently hold the fastest and third-fastest times in the world this year (24.10 and 24.16 respectively).
- Athletes: Justin Ress (Cary, N.C./Mission Viejo Nadadores) and Hunter Armstrong (Dover, Ohio/New York Athletic Club/California Aquatics)
- At last year’s World Championships, Ress out-touched Armstrong for gold but was disqualified for being fully submerged at the finish, giving Armstrong the medal. The DQ was later overturned, giving Ress the title again. Armstrong went on to hand deliver the gold to Ress.
Women 50m Breaststroke
Though the U.S. was absent from the podium in 2019, but Lilly King and Lydia Jacoby are poised to change that this year with the second- and third-fastest times in the world this year (29.77 and 29.81 respectively). If King won gold, she would become the first three-time world champion in event history.
- Athletes: Lilly King (Evansville, Ind./Indiana Swim Club) and Lydia Jacoby (Seward, Alaska, Seward Tsunami Swim Club/University of Texas)
- U.S. has medaled in all but two World Championships since 2005.
- King owns the five fastest times in American history.
- Jacoby’s 29.81 at the Phillips 66 National Championships made her the fourth-fastest American in history and just 0.01 seconds away from cracking the top three.
Men 1500m Freestyle
Both athletes competed in this event at last year’s world championships with Bobby Finke winning silver and Charlie Clark finishing 10th. U.S. seeking first World Championships gold medal in the event since Tim Shaw in 1975.
- Athletes: Bobby Finke (Clearwater, Fla./St. Petersburg Aquatics/Gator Swim Club) and Charlie Clark (Sandusky, Ohio/Vacationland Swim Club/Ohio State)
- Finke’s 14:36.70 at last year’s World Championships earned him silver and set a new American record.
- Clark swam the 1500m freestyle at last year’s World Championships (25m), finishing seventh.
Watch Day 7 prelims on Peacock at 9:30 p.m. ET tonight and semifinals/finals at 7:00 a.m. ET tomorrow. The morning’s session will feature semifinals in the women’s 50m freestyle, the women’s 50m breaststroke and the men’s 50m backstroke. Finals will include the women’s 50m butterfly, the men’s 50m freestyle, the men’s 100m butterfly, the women’s 200m backstroke, the women’s 800m freestyle and the mixed 4x100m medley relay.
More than 1,110 swimmers from 192 countries and the World Aquatics Refugee Team have descended on the city of Fukuoka, Japan to compete in the swimming portion of the 20th edition of these world championships. The World Aquatics Swimming Championships medal table, sorted by federation and by athlete, can be found here.
Keep up with all the latest USA Swimming news by following @usaswimming on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Check out our News Notebook which details programs, athletes and clubs that have made the headlines.