World Championships, Day 2 Women’s Semifinals: Kate Douglass on Top of Tight 100 Breast Qualifying; 100 Back Favorites Advance
The two women’s semifinals held during Monday evening’s session at the World Championships played out in very different fashion. The 100 breaststroke included a tight bunch of competitors that was led by Kate Douglass and saw numerous big names miss out on advancing. But in the 100 backstroke, the quartet of Regan Smith, Kaylee McKeown, Kylie Masse and Kathaine Berkoff remains well clear of the field after this trio comprised the podium at the Paris Olympics as well as the 2023 World Championships.
Women’s 100 Breaststroke Semifinals
Kate Douglass is one of few American swimmers who have competed thus far in Singapore who appears largely unaffected by the stomach illness that has ravaged her teammates. Douglass had the fastest split among the U.S. swimmers on the silver-medal-winning 400 freestyle relay Sunday, her time of 51.90 making her one of three to go under 52, and now she has posted a lifetime best in the 100 breaststroke semifinals.
Douglass clocked 1:05.49 to come out on top in the first heat, taking down her lifetime best of 1:05.79 posted at U.S. Nationals and moving up to No. 2 in the world in the event. Not far behind was Italy’s Anita Bottazzo, who went 1:05.61 for the second seed and the No. 4 performance in the world.
China’s Tang Qianting won the second heat in 1:05.87, seeking to add to her collection of 100 breast medals in recent years. Tang was the world champion last February in Doha and won Olympic silver behind the now-retired Tatjana Smith in Paris. Tang has been as quick as 1:05.57 this year, third in the world rankings.
Neutral athletes Evgeniia Chikunova (1:05.97) and Alina Zmushka (1:06.09) took fourth and fifth, respectively, while Japan’s Satomi Suzuki (1:06.12), Germany’s Anna Elendt (1:06.13) and Lithuania’s Kotryna Teterevkova (1:06.17) rounded out the top-eight.
A significant number of big names missed out on making the cut. Just off the pace was Lilly King, the world-record holder and 2016 Olympic champion. King had the slowest opening length of anyone in the semifinals before returning in 34.79, second-best in the field, but it was not enough as she touched in 1:06.26.
Surprising swimmers missing out were Estonia’s Eneli Jefimova (1:06.26) and Ireland’s Mona McSharry (1:06.33). Both had been 1:05s this year while McSharry was the Olympic bronze medalist last year. Ruta Meilutyte, the Lithuanian who was Olympic gold medalist in 2012 and world champion in 2023, faded to 13th (1:06.57).
Great Britain’s Angharad Evans owns the top time in the world in the event at 1:05.37, but she missed advancing out of the prelims round.
Women’s 100 Backstroke Semifinals
The latest episode in the backstroke rivalry of Regan Smith and Kaylee McKeown was not going to be worked out in the semifinal round, even though the swimmers ended up in adjoining lanes one night earlier than usual. They took turns leading the way in this swim, with McKeown having the best start and finish but Smith taking the win thanks to a strong middle portion, including her usual excellent underwater dolphin kicks.
Smith came in at 58.21, followed by McKeown’s 58.44. Smith owns the fastest time in the world this year at 57.46, and McKeown is No. 2 at 57.65. Both are expected to return to 57-territory in the final, and we’ll see if either can take a shot at Smith’s world record of 57.12.
The most likely swimmers to join the American and Australian on the podium are Canada’s Kylie Masse and the United States’ Katharine Berkoff. Masse, the world champion in 2017 and 2019 and the Olympic bronze medalist in Tokyo, was third in the semifinal round in 58.66 while Berkoff, who won bronze at the 2023 Worlds and Paris Games, won her semifinal heat in 58.79 for fourth overall.
Well back in fifth was Canada’s Taylor Ruck (59.18), followed by China’s Peng Xuwei (59.19) and France’s Mary-Ambre Moluh (59.35), while there was a tie for eighth place between France’s Pauline Mahieu and China’s Wan Letian at 59.56, setting up a swim-off to determine the last spot in the field.
Belgium’s Roos Vanotterdijk ended up 10th in 59.63, but she could not have been too upset as she dashed off to the podium to receive her silver from the 100 butterfly.
