Women's 200m Breaststroke

Molly Renshaw (GBR)

Molly Renshaw is the reigning European champion in the women's 200m breaststroke. She claimed her title in Budapest in 2021.

Great Britain's only medal in the women's 200m breaststroke at the world aquatics championships is a silver medal by Kirsty Balfour in 2007 (Melbourne).


Other contenders

Lisa Mamie (SUI) could win the first medal for Switzerland in a women's swimming event at the world aquatics championships since Flavia Rigamonti's silver medal in the women's 1500m freestyle in 2007.

Jenna Strauch (AUS) could hand Australia its first medal in the women's 200m breaststroke at the world aquatics championships since Leisel Jones won her second world title in 2007 (Melbourne).

Kotryna Teterevkova (LTU) could become the second female swimmer representing Lithuania to claim a medal at the world aquatics championships, after Ruta Meilutyte (G1-S2-B0). Meilutyte grabbed her medals in the 100m (1 gold, 1 silver) and the 50m breaststroke (silver) from 2013 to 2015.

Kate Douglass (USA) swam the second-fastest time in the world this year in the women's 200m breaststroke, 2:21.43, behind Lilly King at the US trials.

United States could become the third country to achieve a 1-2 finish in the women's 200m breaststroke at the world aquatics championships, after East Germany in 1973 and Soviet Union in 1978.

Canada has claimed five medals in this specific event at the world aquatics championships but has yet to win gold (G0-S1-B4). The silver medal was achieved by Annamay Pierse in 2009 (Rome).

 

Women's 100m Freestyle

Sarah Sjöström (SWE)

Sarah Sjöström has won a record four medals in the women's 100m freestyle at the world aquatics championships, but has yet to win gold (G0-S3-B1).

Sjöström can become the first swimmer on at least five medals in specific event at the world aquatics championships without winning gold.

Sjöström, 28 years old, can become the oldest woman to win gold in the 100m freestyle at the world aquatics championships.

Sjöström became the first woman to go sub-52 seconds in the women's 100m freestyle when she set the world record at 51.71s in the women's 4x100m freestyle relay at the 2017 World Championships in Budapest. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Emma McKeon (AUS, 51.96) became the second woman to achieve this.

Sjöström holds the world records in the 50m and 100m freestyle, and in the 50m and 100m butterfly. She has won world titles in all of those events except the 100m freestyle.

Of all the women to have held the world record in the 100m freestyle, Sjöström is the only one not to have won a world title in this event since the world championships have been held (1973).


Other contenders

Simone Manuel (USA) won this event in each of the past two world aquatics championships, but she will not compete this year.

Australia (4) or United States (4) can equal East Germany (5) as countries to win the most gold medals in the women's 100m freestyle at the world aquatics championships.

Mollie O'Callaghan (AUS), 18 years and 82 days old on the day of the final of this event, can become the youngest winner of the women's 100m freestyle since 1991, when Nicole Haislett (USA) was 18 years and 22 days old.

Siobhán Haughey (HKG) became the first swimmer representing Hong Kong China to claim Olympic medals, when she took silver in the women's 100m freestyle and 200m freestyle at Tokyo 2020. Haughey won the women's 100m freestyle at the world championships short course in Abu Dhabi in 2021.

Haughey can win Hong Kong China its first medal at the world aquatic championships.

Penny Oleksiak (CAN), joint-Olympic champion with Simone Manuel in the women's 100m freestyle in 2016, has yet to win her first medal in this event at the world aquatics championships.

Oleksiak can win Canada its first medal in the women's 100m freestyle at the world aquatic championships.

Claire Curzan (USA), 17 years old, can become the first woman to claim a medal in the 100m freestyle at the world aquatics championships before her 18th birthday since 1994, when Lü Bin (CHN, 17) and Franziska van Almsick (GER, 16) took silver and bronze respectively.

China's most recent medal in the women's 100m freestyle at the world aquatics championships was in 1998, when Shan Ying claimed bronze. China's only world title in this event was by Le Jingyi in 1994.