Noe Ponti Breaks 50 Fly World Record in Shanghai; First Swiss World Record in Almost 40 Years

2024 WORLD AQUATICS SWIMMING WORLD CUP-SHANGHAI

Swiss swimmer Noe Ponti, who has had a fast weekend in Shanghai already, broke through with a new World Record in the men’s 50 fly on Sunday morning during the prelims session, touching in 21.67. The World Record swim comes with a $10,000 bonus and is the first World Record of this year’s series (though Gretchen Walsh broke one in the 100 IM on domestic soil in America on Friday, coincidental timing).

Ponti’s swim broke the old record that was shared by Nicholas Santos of Brazil and Szebasztian Szabo of Hungary at matching 21.75s. Santos’ swim was done in October 2018 at the Budapest stop of the World Cup, while Szabo’s was done in November 21 at the European Short Course Championships in Kazan, Russia.

Ponti’s swim also breaks Szabo’s European Record, Santos’ World Cup Record, and Ponti’s own Swiss Record of 21.79 from last December’s European Championships that itself narrowly-missed the World Record.

Top 5 Performers All-Time, Men’s 50 SCM Fly

1. Noe Ponti, Switzerland, 2024 – 21.67
2. (TIE) Nicholas Santos, Brazil, 2018/Szebasztian Szabo, Hungary, 2021 – 21.75
4. Steffen Deibler, Germany, 2010 – 21.80
5. Roland Schoeman, South Africa, 2010 – 21.87

Ponti becomes the first Swiss swimmer to set a World Record in swimming in a World Aquatics approved event since Dano Halsall set the long course World Record in the 50 meter free on July 21, 1985 (22.52).

Ponti is the top seed by about three-tenths over the Netherlands’ Nyls Korstanje, whose 21.96 split breaks his own Dutch Record of 22.25 from 2022. That makes Korstanje just the 9th man in history to break 22 seconds in this event.

Ponti previously finished 3rd in the 200 IM in 1:51.78 and won the 100 fly in 48.40. Both were new Swiss Records and the latter is both a World Cup and European Record.

He was scheduled to swim the 200 free on Sunday as well, but scratched the race.