2024 SC World Championships: Day 6 Finals Live Recap

2024 SC WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

This is the end, folks.

After a fantastic week of racing in Budapest, we’ve reached the final session of the 2024 Short Course World Championships. But, with many of the swimmers who helped make this meet so electric in the pool again tonight–like Gretchen Walsh, Summer McIntosh, Kate Douglass, and Jordan Crooks, to name a few–it seems like this meet will go out not with a whimper, but with a bang.

Day 6 Finals Heat Sheet

• Women’s 50 freestyle — final
• Men’s 50 freestyle — final
• Women’s 50 breaststroke — final
• Men’s 50 breaststroke — final
• Women’s 200 backstroke — final
• Men’s 200 backstroke — final
• Women’s 200 freestyle — final
• Men’s 200 freestyle — final
• Women’s 4×100 medley relay — final
• Men’s 4×100 medley relay — final

Two world records went down during the 50 freestyle semifinals. Walsh continued her record-breaking spree by taking down Ranomi Kromowidjojo‘s mark, while Crooks became the first man to break 20 seconds in the short-course meter pool, swimming a 19.90 to reset his 20.08 world standard from prelims. What do they have in store for us during the final?

Other world record breakers from this week in the pool for their final individual events include McIntosh and Regan Smith, who will go head-to-head in the women’s 200 backstroke final. McIntosh chose to take on this test rather than the 200 IM, and she’s been on fire this week, setting three world records en route to three golds. In the 200 backstroke, she runs into the current world record holder, Smith, who set her 1:58.83 mark earlier this fall and is looking to complete her sweep of the backstrokes in Budapest.

After breaking Paul Biedermann‘s super-suited mark leading off the men’s 200 freestyle relay, Luke Hobson now eyes gold in the individual 200 freestyle. He’s the top qualifier heading into finals, swimming a 1:41.55 in the heats to move through three-hundredths ahead of Belgium’s Lucas Henveaux. Henveaux set a national record in the heats, as did the third-place qualifier, Finland’s Tomas Koski (1:41.92).

Olympic champion Hubert Kos asserted himself in the men’s 200 backstroke heats, swimming a 1:48.02. He was the only man to break 1:50 in prelims, and he’s looking to end his meet on a high note and earn a gold medal in front of a home crowd after getting out-touched in two tight finals in the 50 and 100 backstroke.

The meet ends with the women’s and men’s 4×100 medley relays. The U.S. women have loaded up with Smith, Lilly King, Walsh, and Douglass as their lineup. Poland is the top qualifier through the heats on the men’s side. The Neutral Athletes ‘B’ have added 50 and 100 backstroke champion Miron Lifintsev to their squad, and the U.S. swapped three legs and is going with Shaine Casas, Michael Andrew, Dare Rose, and Jack Alexy. The full relay lineups are listed below, or you can check our articles breaking down the women’s and men’s lineups.

Women’s 4×100 Medley Relay Lineups

Men’s 4×100 Medley Relay Lineups

Women’s 50 Freestyle — Final

• World Record: 22.87 — Gretchen Walsh, USA (2024)
• World Junior Record: 23.69 — Anastasiya Shkurdai, BLR (2020)
• World Championship Record: 22.87 — Gretchen Walsh, USA (2024)
• 2022 World Champion: Emma McKeon, AUS — 23.04

Final:

1. Gretchen Walsh (USA) — 22.83 ***WORLD RECORD***
2. Kate Douglass (USA) — 23.05
3. Kasia Wasick (POL) — 23.37
4. Eva Okaro (GBR) — 23.66 ***WORLD JUNIOR RECORD***
5. Meg Harris (AUS) — 23.73
6. Silvia di Pietro (ITA) — 23.85
7. Sara Curtis (ITA) — 23.87
8. Arina Surkova (NAB) — 23.95

And that’s another world record for Walsh here in Budapest. She kept doing what she’d been doing all week during the final of the women’s 50 freestyle, slicing four-hundredths off the world record she set during prelims with a 23.83 to claim gold.

The United States went 1-2 in this event as Walsh’s Virginia training partner Douglass claimed the silver medal in a personal best of 23.05. Poland’s Kasia Wasick rounded out the podium, earning bronze in 23.37 as Poland keeps an exciting week going.

Great Britain’s Eva Okaro swam a world junior record to finish just outside the medals in fourth. She swam a 23.66, taking three-hundredths off the record Anastasiya Shkurdai swam in 2020. Her time moves her up to #2 all-time among British women, behind only Halsall.

Men’s 50 Freestyle — Final

• World Record: 19.90 — Jordan Crooks, CAY (2024)
• World Junior Record: 20.98 — Simons Kenzo, NED (2019)
• World Championship Record: 19.90 — Jordan Crooks, CAY (2024)
• 2022 World Champion: Jordan Crooks, CAY — 20.46

Final:

1. Jordan Crooks (CAY), 20.19
2. Gui Santos (BRA), 20.57
3. Jack Alexy (USA), 20.61
4. Chris Guiliano (USA), 20.78
5. Nyls Korstanje (NED), 20.78
6. Egor Kornev (NAB), 20.81
7. Maxime Grousset (FRA), 20.90
8. Ji Yuchan (KOR), 20.91

Jordan Crooks successfully defended his 50 freestyle world title from two years ago. He led from start to finish, turning in 9.64 and storming home in 10.55 to clock a 20.19 for gold. It’s becoming a pattern for Crooks to have his best swim of an event in semifinals–that stayed true here as he was off the incredible 19.90 world record he set yesterday.

However, 20.19 was enough to earn gold by .38 seconds, as his Tennessee training parter Gui Santos earned the silver medal in 20.57. The swim is a lifetime best for Santos, taking two-hundredths off his time from semifinals. He’s now six-hundredths off Cesar Cielo‘s Brazilian record (20.51) from 2010.

The Americans earned third and fourth in this event, as Jack Alexy grabbed the final step of the podium with a 20.61. Alexy flipped fifth but swam a 10.71 on the second 25 meters to get his hand on the wall in medal position. Chris Guiliano made a similar charge on the back half of the race, moving from seventh at the turn (9.97) to fourth in 20.78.

Women’s 50 Breaststroke — Final

Final:

1. Ruta Meilutyte (LTU) — 28.54
2. Tang Qianting (CHN) — 28.86
3. Lilly King (USA) — 28.91
4. Benedetta Pilato (ITA) — 29.11
5. Eneli Jefimova (EST) — 29.13
6. Dominika Sztandera (POL) — 29.49
7. Alina Zmushka (NAA) — 29.56
8. Veera Kivirinta (FIN) — 29.69

Men’s 50 Breaststroke — Final

• World Record: 24.95 — Emre Sacki, TUR (2021)
• World Junior Record: 25.66 — Chris Smith, RSA (2024)
• World Championship Record: 25.38 — Nick Fink, USA (2022)
• 2022 World Champion: Nick Finke, USA — 25.38

Final:

Women’s 200 Backstroke — Final

• World Record: 1:58.83 — Regan Smith, USA (2024)
• World Junior Record: 2:00.03 — Missy Franklin, USA (2011)
• Championship Record: 1:59.23 — Katinka Hosszu, HUN (2014)
• 2022 Champion: Kaylee McKeown, AUS — 1:59.26

Final:

Men’s 200 Backstroke — Final

• World Record: 1:45.63 — Mitch Larkin, AUS (2015)
• World Junior Record: 1:48.02 — Kliment Kolesnikov, RUS (2017)
• Championship Record: 1:46.68 — Ryan Lochte, USA (2010)
• 2022 Champion: Ryan Murphy, USA — 1:47.41

Final:

Women’s 200 Freestyle — Final

• World Record: 1:50.31 — Siobhan Haughey, HKG (2021)
• World Junior Record: 1:52.51 — Claire Weinstein, USA (2024)
• Championship Record: 1:50.31 — Siobhan Haughey, HKG (2021)
• 2022 Champion: Siobhan Haughey, HKG — 1:51.65

Final:

Men’s 200 Freestyle — Final

• World Record: 1:38.91 — Luke Hobson, USA (2024)
• World Junior Record: 1:40.68 — Matthew Sates, RSA (2021)
• Championship Record: 1:38.91 — Luke Hobson, USA (2024)
• 2022 Champion: Hwang Sun-woo, KOR — 1:39.72

Final:

Women’s 4×100 Medley Relay — Final

• World Record: 3:44.35 — United States (C. Curzan, L. King, T. Huske, K. Douglass) (2022)
• Championship Record: 3:44.35 — United States (C. Curzan, L. King, T. Huske, K. Douglass) (2022)
• 2022 Champion: United States (C. Curzan, L. King, T. Huske, K. Douglass) — 3:44.35

Final:

Men’s 4×100 Medley Relay — Final

• World Record: 3:18.98 — Australia (I. Coopers, J. Yong, M. Temple, K. Chalmers) / United States (R. Murphy, N. Fink, T. Julian, K. Smith) (2022)
• Championship Record: 3:18.98 — Australia (I. Coopers, J. Yong, M. Temple, K. Chalmers) / United States (R. Murphy, N. Fink, T. Julian, K. Smith) (2022)
• 2022 Champion: Tie – Australia (I. Coopers, J. Yong, M. Temple, K. Chalmers) / United States (R. Murphy, N. Fink, T. Julian, K. Smith) — 3:18.98

Final: