2017 FINA WORLD SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Russia’s Yuliya Efimova added a 4th medal to her 2017 World Championship collection during the final female event of the meet, the women’s 400 medley relay. Her and the Russian squad annihilated the European record to win silver in 3:53.38, and Efimova had a historic breaststroke split.

The 25-year-old threw down the fastest breaststroke leg in history, coming in at 1:04.03. She surpasses Chen Huijia of China’s 1:04.12 from the 2009 World Championships.

Lilly King, who broke the 100m world record in 1:04.13, split 1:04.48 on the relay as the Americans won gold. She also split 1:04.17 on the mixed medley relay earlier in the meet.

Former world record holder Jessica Hardy‘s fastest split is just 1:05.10. The American team was DQed in prelims in 2009 preventing Rebecca Soni from throwing down something there, as she went 1:04.8 individually. Her best split comes from 2011, 1:04.71. Ruta Meilutyte, also a former world record holder, hasn’t done a relay split in many years given Lithuania hasn’t entered any relays at any big international meets.

Though mixed lead-off legs don’t count as official times, we’re going to count King’s mixed split here in the top relay legs in history. Check out the list below:

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Of course, because her flat start is horrendous. In the water, she’s the fastest 100 breastroker, she was just at King’s hip on the start.

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1 year ago

CROOKED HILLARY

Hopefully she focuses on that start the next couple of years so she can get that double in Tokyo.

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1 year ago

Vlad Squad loves breaststroke

I am just happy her relay start was better than the Rio Olympic one. 😉

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1 year ago

Ed P

That’s an incredible swim. I feel like she’s just getting faster too. Btw who the hell is Chen Huijia and what’s up with all these Chinese one hit wonders?

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1 year ago

Quack

I can barely find anything online about her and her swimming career, can’t even find her name in Chinese characters to be able to search that and see what comes up. Mysterious. You are right, they do have a lot of one hit wonders from china that occasionally produce a solid time at one big international competition, then fade into oblivion, never showing up in swim results ever again.

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1 year ago

Jimbo

A lot of them showed up at the 2009 world champs with the super suits. I have a feeling that had something to do with that.

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1 year ago

applesorangesandbananas

“Her and her Russian squad” should be “She and her Russian squad”, no?

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1 year ago

Domino

Absolutely.

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1 year ago

About James Sutherland

James formerly competed for the Laurentian Voyageurs in Sudbury, Ontario, specializing in the 200 free, back and IM. He finished up his collegiate swimming career in February of 2018, placing 11th at the OUA Championships in the 200 IM, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in economics in May. He …