2016 Short Course World Championships: Day 6 Prelims Live Recap

2016 SHORT COURSE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

• December 6th – December 11th, 2016
• Windsor, Ontario, Canada
• WFCU Centre
• SCM (25m)
• Prelims: 9:30 AM EST/Finals: 6:30 PM EST
• Start Lists/Results
• Live Stream ($)

Today marks the final day of competition at the 2016 FINA Short Course World Championships, with 5 events slated for the day 6 prelims session. This morning will be packed with relay action, with swimmers gearing up for the women’s 200 free relay, men’s 400 medley relay, and women’s 400 medley relay. The individual events on this morning’s schedule are the men’s 200 back and women’s 200 breast. Follow along with us for a live recap of this morning’s events.

Aussie backstroke star Mitch Larkin, a 2016 Olympic medalist, will headline the men’s 200 back. Team USA will send out Olympian Jacob Pebley and junior standout Michael Taylor in that event. Defending world champ Radoslaw Kawecki (POL) will also be in the mix.

The women’s 200 breast will feature U.S. Olympians Lilly King and Molly Hannis, who both medaled in the 200 breast last night. The top seed in that race, however, is Great Britain’s Molly Renshaw, who enters with a 2:18. We’ll also get to see Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu in that race.

WOMEN’S 200 FREE RELAY PRELIMS

• 2014 World Champion: Netherlands, 1:34.24, 2014
• World Record: Netherlands, 1:34.24, 2014
• Championship Record: Netherlands, 1:34.24, 2014

Top 8:

1. Denmark, 1:37.38
2. Netherlands, 1:37.45 
3. Canada, 1:37.91
4. France, 1:37.97
5. USA, 1:38.11
6.  Italy, 1:38.15
7. China, 1:38.24
8. Japan, 1:39.54

The Danish women have the top seed for finals after Jeanette Ottesen blasted the fastest split of the field with a 23.54 on the anchor leg. They were followed closely by the Netherlands and Canada, who each got a 24.1 rolling start split courtesy of Kim Busch (NED) and Taylor Ruck (CAN).

Team USA wound up qualifying 5th for the final, with anchor Mallory Comerford clocking a 24.08 for the 2nd fastest split of the field.

MEN’S 200 BACK PRELIMS

• 2014 World Champion: Radoslaw Kawecki, 1:47.38
• World Record: Mitch Larkin (AUS), 1:45.63, 2015
• Championship Record: Ryan Lochte (USA), 1:46.68, 2010

Top 8:

1. Masaki Kaneko (JPN), 1:50.30
2. Radoslaw Kawecki (POL), 1:51.00
3. Jacob Pebley (USA), 1:51.17
4. Xu Jiayu (CHN), 1:51.35
5. Danas Rapsys (LTU), 1:51.38
6. Hayate Matsubara (JPN), 1:51.51
7. Mitch Larkin (AUS), 1:51.87
8. Robert Glinta (ROU), 1:51.92

Japan put 2 swimmers into the 200 back final, with Masaki Kaneko taking top seed and Hayate Matsubara qualifying 6th. Kaneko was the only swimmer under 1:51, with every other swimmer in the top 8 falling in that range. Defending world champ Radoslaw Kawecki (POL) and U.S. Olympian Jacob Pebley followed with a pair of 1:51-lows. Australia’s Mitch Larkin and Romania’s Robert Glinta, who were both backstroke finalists in Rio, squeaked into the final ahead of Hungary’s Peter Bernek (1:52.05).

WOMEN’S 200 BREAST PRELIMS

• 2014 World Champion: Kanako Watanabe (JPN), 2:16.92
• World Record: Rebecca Soni (USA), 2:14.57, 2009
• Championship Record: Rikke Pedersen (DEN), 2:16.08, 2012

Top 8:

1. Chloe Tutton (GBR), 2:18.89
2. Kierra Smith (CAN), 2:19.87
3. Kelsey Wog (CAN), 2:20.26
4. Kako Ishida (JPN), 2:20.39
5. Molly Renshaw (GBR), 2:20.80
6. Molly Hannis (USA), 2:20.82
7. Fanny Lecluyse (BEL), 2:20.96
8. Lilly King (USA), 2:21.17

Great Britain’s Chloe Tutton picked up the top seed for finals, while her teammate Molly Renshaw, who was seeded with the fastest time, qualified 5th. Canadian’s Kierra Smith and Kelsey Wog put on a show for the home crowd, taking 2nd and 3rd in prelims. Team USA’s Molly Hannis got through to the final in 6th, while Lilly King snuck in at 8th.

King cut it close this morning, as her 2:21.17 was just a hundredth faster than 9th place finisher Reona Aoki (JPN).

MEN’S 400 MEDLEY RELAY PRELIMS

• 2014 World Champion: Brazil, 3:21.14
• World Record: Russia, 3:19.16, 2009
• Championship Record: USA, 3:20.99, 2010

Top 8:

1. Australia, 3:25.75
2. Russia, 3:25.84
3. Belarus, 3:26.30
4. USA, 3:26.88
5. (T-5) Great Britain, 3:27.03
6. (T-5) France, 3:27.03
7. China, 3:27.38
8. Japan, 3:27.47

Australia and Russia were separated by just a tenth this morning, with their butterfliers, David Morgan (AUS) and Alexander Popkov (RUS), each throwing down a 49 split. Pavel Sankovich helped propel Belarus to a top 3 seed, leading them off with a 51.47 backstroke split.

We don’t usually see Josh Prenot swimming butterfly on relays, but he got the job done for Team USA with a 50.24 split to help them to 4th this morning.

WOMEN’S 400 MEDLEY RELAY PRELIMS

• 2014 World Champion: Denmark, 3:48.86
• World Record: USA, 3:45.20, 2015
• Championship Record: China, 3:48.29, 2010

Top 8:

1. USA, 3:52.85
2. Japan, 3:52.97
3. Australia, 3:52.98
4. Canada, 3:53.68
5. Italy, 3:54.60
6. Russia, 3:55.65
7. China, 3:56.21
8. Great Britain, 3:56.64

Just a tenth separated the top 3 teams in prelims, with Amanda Weir anchoring for the USA in 53.12 to help them take top seed for finals. Japan and Australia battled in heat 2, with Emily Seebohm giving the Aussies the early lead after a 56.97 back split. Japanese junior standout Rikako Ikee gave her team the edge on the butterfly leg, giving them a big enough lead to hold off Australian freestyler Brittany Elmslie (53.12).

Canada’s Taylor Ruck had the fastest free split of the field, anchoring in 53.00 to set them up as the 4th seed.

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