FLASH! Kate Douglass Becomes First Female Under 50 in 100 Freestyle (SCM)
Six days after Kate Douglass broke a freestyle world record for the first time, she has taken her mark even lower by becoming the first woman to break 50 seconds in the short course meters 100 freestyle. Douglass achieved a barrier that had eluded even the best sprinters in history, and she defeated some of the world’s best in convincing fashion to secure the title and record.
In the 100 free final at the Toronto World Cup, Douglass had to face off against Australia’s Mollie O’Callaghan and the Netherlands’ Marrit Steenbergen. O’Callaghan was the 2022 and 2023 world champion in this event, and she set a world record in the 200 free Friday evening while Steenbergen won the world title in the event this year. But the short course format favored Douglass here, and the American exploded off each turn to build a decisive lead.
Douglass flipped in 23.93, hundredths behind her own world-record pace from last week, but she was already comfortably ahead of her heralded competitors. By the 75-meter mark, Douglass moved slightly under record pace, and she fought down the stretch to achieve a 49-second performance.
Douglass touched in 49.93, one-quarter of a second under her previous world record of 50.19, which in turn surpassed Cate Campbell’s record of 50.25 that had lasted since 2017. The victory gave Douglass a third 100 free win in three World Cup after she previously secured series crowns in the 200 breast and 100 breast. Moreover, this world-record performance allowed Douglass to leapfrog training partner Gretchen Walsh in the World Cup standings and secure the overall women’s title for the second consecutive year.
“I think in my mind I was like doing a 49 would be sick, but I had no idea if I was capable of that tonight,” Douglass said. “I didn’t even expect to be in contention for the top spot (in the World Cup standings) this year. I knew there was a lot of competition. I knew a lot of these girls were going to be capable of setting world records. And I mean, the 100 freestyle world record was not something I expected coming into this. So yeah, I’m surprised but really happy.
O’Callaghan placed second in 50.82, jumping to eighth all-time in the event. Steenbergen grabbed third in 51.10, leaving her just outside of the historical top-10.
