2022 FINA World Cup – Berlin: Day 1 Finals Live Recap

2022 FINA WORLD CUP – BERLIN

• Friday, October 21 – Sunday, October 23, 2022
• Europa-Sportpark, Berlin, Germany
• SCM (25 meters)
• Start Times
  • Prelims: 8:30 am local / 2:30 am ET
  • Finals: 7:00 pm local / 1:00 pm ET
• Meet Central
• Psych Sheet
• Live Results (Omega)
• Live Stream (FINA YouTube)
• Day 1 Finals Heat Sheet

The first night of finals from the opening stop of the 2022 FINA World Cup series in Berlin will feature 12 events, with some key names taking on tough doubles.

Among those is the American duo of Hali Flickinger and Beata Nelson, as Flickinger will take on the women’s 400 free and 200 fly and Nelson will race the women’s 50 back and 100 IM. Sweden’s Louise Hansson will race the same double as Nelson.

Flickinger, who will have just over half an hour between races, qualified second out of the prelims in the 400 free, clocking 4:05.61 to trail German Isabel Gose (4:03.01), and in the 200 fly she sits fourth (2:06.83), though just over seven-tenths back of top seed Helena Bach (2:06.11).

Nelson sits fifth in the stacked women’s 50 back field, where Canadians Ingrid Wilm (26.35) and Kylie Masse (26.49) hold the top two spots and Hansson (26.58) sits third.

In the 100 IM, Nelson qualified first by nearly eight-tenths in 58.68, followed by Lithuanian Ruta Meilutyte (59.40).

On the men’s side, Matt Sates will bookend the session by racing in the first men’s event on the schedule in the 400 free, and the last race of the night in the 100 IM.

Sates won the 400 free in three of the four stops on last year’s circuit, and the only man to beat him, Danas Rapsys, will go head-to-head with him tonight.

The two men were separated by just two one-hundredths this morning, with Rapsys (3:41.51) leading the pack and Sates (3:41.53) a close second. American Kieran Smith should pose a challenge for the win as well, as he sits third in 3:42.85.

In the 100 IM, Sates comes in with the fourth seed after clocking 53.27 in the heats, with Italian sprint dynamo Thomas Ceccon leading the way in 52.63.

Other races to keep an eye on include the men’s 100 breast, where Reece Whitley (57.06) was the surprise top qualifier over Nic Fink (57.28) and Nicolo Martinenghi (58.04), and the men’s 100 fly, where Germany’s Marius Kusch (49.88) leads a field that feature five finalists from last year’s Short Course World Championships.

Back to the women’s 400 free, Siobhan Haughey will be one to watch as she returns from an injury that forced her out of the World Championships this summer, while Shaine Casas is another marquee name in the mix after qualifying first in the men’s 200 back by over a second. Casas also missed the final of the 100 IM this morning by just one one-hundredth of a second.

Watch finals live here:

Women’s 400 free – final

• World Record: 3:53.92, Ariarne Titmus (AUS) – 2018
• World Junior Record: 3:53.97, Wang Jianjiahe (CHN) – 2018
• World Cup Record: 3:53.97, Wang Jianjiahe (CHN) – 2018

1. Siobhan Haughey (HKG), 3:56.52
2. Barbora Seemanova (CZE), 4:00.15
3. Isabel Gose (GER), 4:00.19
4. Hali Flickinger (USA), 4:03.01
5. Katja Fain (SLO), 4:04.28
6. Valentine Dumont (BEL), 4:04.43
7. Imani de Jong (NED), 4:06.16
8. Maddy Gough (AUS), 4:09.67

Siobhan Haughey showed no signs of rust after being forced to sit out of this summer’s World Championships with an injury, as she annihilated the field in the women’s 400 freestyle and set a new national record to boot.

Haughey took over the lead from Barbora Seemanova just after the 100-meter turn and never looked back, gradually pulling away for a final time of 3:56.52, breaking her previous national record of 3:57.06 set last year in the International Swimming League (ISL).

Seemanova, who recently made the move to train in the Philippines alongside coach Luka Gabrilo, had a very impressive showing to hold on for second, clocking 4:00.15 to knock nearly two seconds off her Czech Record set last year (4:02.09).

Germany’s Isabel Gose, the winner of this event at the first two legs of the FINA World Cup last year, closed strong to take third in 4:00.19, while American Hali Flickinger was back in fourth in 4:03.01.

Men’s 400 free – final

• World Record: 3:32.25, Yannick Agnel (FRA) – 2012
• World Junior Record: 3:37.92, Matt Sates (RSA) – 2021
• World Cup Record: 3:32.77, Paul Biedermann (GER) – 2009

1. Matt Sates (RSA), 3:36.30
2. Kieran Smith (USA), 3:37.27
3. Danas Rapsys (LTU), 3:40.36
4. Marwan El Kamash (EGY), 3:40.94
5. Luc Kroon (NED), 3:41.06
6. Kregor Zirk (EST), 3:42.64
7. Henrik Christiansen (NOR), 3:43.71
8. Jon Joentvedt (NOR), 3:44.45

Matt Sates put his back-end speed on full display in the men’s 400 freestyle, winning the event to kick off the FINA World Cup circuit as he seeks a title defense of his overall title from last year.

Sates won this event at the last three stops of the series in 2021, including breaking the World Junior Record in 3:37.92. Although he’s no longer eligible to break that mark, the 19-year-old showed improved form by dropping a blistering 3:36.30 to win the event here in Berlin, even-splitting the race with 200 splits of 1:48.11/1:48.19.

Not only does Sates lower his own personal best, he also downs the African Record of 3:36.75, set by Tunisian Ous Mellouli in 2008, and the South African Record of 3:37.91 set by Myles Brown in 2013.

American Kieran Smith had a strong swim in his FINA World Cup (finals) debut, clocking 3:37.27 to place second.

Danas Rapsys, who won this event last year in Berlin, faded down the stretch but held on for third in 3:40.36, while Marwan El Kamash set a new Egyptian Record for fourth in 3:40.94.

Women’s 50 back – final

• World Record: 25.27, Maggie MacNeil (CAN) – 2021
• World Junior Record: 26.13, Olivia Smoliga (USA) – 2012
• World Cup Record: 25.81, Kira Toussaint (NED) – 2021

1. Kylie Masse (CAN), 26.15
2. Ingrid Wilm (CAN), 26.21
3. Maaike de Waard (NED), 26.39
4. Louise Hansson (SWE), 26.45
5. Beata Nelson (USA), 26.47
6. Mary-Ambre Moluh (FRA), 26.52
7. Simona Kubova (CZE), 26.56
8. Linnea Mack (USA)

The women’s 50 back produced an incredibly tight race with all eight finalists separated by just 43 one-hundredths of a second.

Coming out on top was Kylie Masse, the reigning world champion in the long course version of the event, as she clocked 26.15 to out-touch Canadian teammate Ingrid Wilm (26.21) at the wall.

In addition to winning the 50 back world title this summer in Budapest, Masse was also the runner-up to another Canadian, Maggie MacNeil, at last year’s SC World Championships in what remains her PB of 25.62.

Wilm was within two-tenths of her best time (26.03) for second, while the Netherlands’ Maaike de Waard rounded out the top three in 26.39.

Men’s 200 back – final

• World Record: 1:45.63, Mitch Larkin (AUS) – 2015
• World Junior Record: 1:48.02, Kliment Kolesnikov (RUS) – 2017
• World Cup Record: 1:46.11, Arkady Vyatchanin (RUS) – 2009

1. Shaine Casas (USA), 1:50.02
2. Yohann Ndoye Brouard (FRA), 1:50.56
3. Radoslaw Kawecki (POL), 1:52.56
4. Hubert Kos (HUN), 1:52.84
5. Ksawery Masiuk (POL), 1:53.54
6. Tomas Franta (CZE), 1:53.66
7. Filip Kosinki (POL), 1:53.68
8. David Gerchik (ISR), 1:54.79

American Shaine Casas successfully out-dueled Frenchman Yohann Ndoye Brouard in the men’s 200 back, using strong underwaters to secure victory in a time of 1:50.02.

Casas was the runner-up in this event at the Short Course World Championships last year, where he produced his current best time of 1:48.81.

Ndoye Brouard, sixth in that Worlds final last December, was just .03 slower than he was in Abu Dhabi to finish a close second in 1:50.56.

Reigning short course world champion Radoslaw Kawecki, the elder statesman of the field by seven years at the age of 31, managed to hold off Hungarian Hubert Kos (1:52.84) to take third in 1:52.56.

Kawecki has been wildly successful in this event over the last decade, winning the short course world title in the 200 back in 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2021.

Women’s 200 fly – final

• World Record: 1:59.61, Mireia Belmonte (ESP) – 2014
• World Junior Record: 2:02.96, Suzuka Hasegawa (JPN) – 2017
• World Cup Record: 2:00.78, Liu Zige (CHN) – 2009

1. Ilaria Cusinato (ITA), 2:05.30
2. Laura Lahtinen (FIN), 2:05.61
3. Hali Flickinger (USA), 2:05.63
4. Helena Bach (DEN), 2:06.19
5. Lana Pudar (BIH), 2:06.25
6. Lotte Hosper (NED), 2:09.08
7. Amina Kajitaz (CRO), 2:09.59
8. Zsuzsanna Jakabos (HUN), 2:09.65

Italian Ilaria Cusinato overcame a tightly-bunched field to claim victory in the women’s 200 fly, resetting her best time in 2:05.30.

Cusinato jumped on the lead after the opening 50 and really made inroads on the field during the middle 100, and then down the last length she managed to fend off a hard-charging Laura Lahtinen for the victory.

Lahtinen set a new Finnish Record of 2:05.61 to finish as the runner-up, knocking nearly a full second off her previous mark of 2:06.52.

Despite coming off of a tough double, having raced the 400 free earlier in the session, Hali Flickinger moved up from fifth at the 150 to snag a spot on the podium in third, touching in 2:05.63 with the field’s fastest closing 50 (32.26).

Denmark’s Helena Bach (2:06.19) and Bosnian standout Lana Pudar (2:06.25) were in the thick of things most of the way but trailed off on the last 50 to place fourth and fifth, respectively.

Men’s 100 fly – final

• World Record: 47.78, Caeleb Dressel (USA) – 2020
• World Junior Record: 49.53, Li Zhuhao (CHN) – 2017
• World Cup Record: 48.48, Evgenii Korotyshkin (RUS) – 2009

1. Chad Le Clos (RSA), 48.58
2. Noe Ponti (SUI), 49.38
3. Matteo Rivolta (ITA), 49.75
4. Tom Shields (USA), 49.96
5. Marius Kusch (GER), 50.19
6. Stanislas Huille (FRA), 50.52
7. Jakub Majerski (POL), 50.57
8. Jan Sefl (CZE), 50.78

South African Chad Le Clos delivered a fiery performance in the men’s 100 fly, showing no signs of slowing down at the age of 30.

Le Clos blasted his way to victory in a time of 48.58, marking the 10th-fastest performance of all-time and his fastest since 2020. He was also just a tenth off the World Cup Record set back in 2009, and half a second off his personal best and former world record of 48.08.

Noe Ponti was the runner-up in 49.38, clipping 11 one-hundredths off his Swiss National Record set at last year’s SC Worlds (49.49).

2021 short course world champion Matteo Rivolta picked up third in 49.75, while American Tom Shields made it four men sub-50 in 49.96.

Shields won this event at all four stops of the circuit last year, with his winning times ranging from 48.67 to 49.46.

Women’s 200 breast – final

• World Record: 2:14.57, Rebecca Soni (USA) – 2009
• World Junior Record: 2:16.88, Evgeniia Chikunova (RUS) – 2021
• World Cup Record: 2:15.42, Leisel Jones (AUS) – 2009

1. Tes Schouten (NED), 2:19.55
2. Thea Blomsterberg (DEN), 2:19.96
3. Abbie Wood (GBR), 2:21.27
4. Clara Rybak-Andersen (DEN), 2:21.55
5. Kristyna Horska (CZE), 2:21.93
6. Lisa Angiolini (ITA), 2:22.13
7. Charlotte Bonnet (FRA), 2:22.47
8. Sienna Robinson (GBR), 2:24.36

After setting a new Dutch Record of 2:20.89 in the prelims, Tes Schouten shattered that mark to win the women’s 200 breast final tonight, touching in 2:19.55.

Schouten opened up a big lead early, out in 1:06.43 at the 100, and then after getting a little bit of pressure from Denmark’s Thea Blomsterberg on the third 50, charged home for the win with a 36.75 closing split to dip under the 2:20 barrier.

Blomsterberg, 20, also cracked 2:20 for the first time to take second, clocking 2:19.96 to improve on her previous best of 2:20.77.

Great Britain’s Abbie Wood took third in 2:21.27, holding off Denmark’s Clara Rybak-Andersen (2:21.55), who had the second-fastest closing 50 in 36.67. The fastest was Italian Lisa Angiolini, who came back in 36.58 to take sixth in 2:22.13.

Men’s 100 breast – final

• World Record: 55.28, Ilya Shymanovich (BLR) – 2021
• World Junior Record: 56.66, Simone Cerasuolo (ITA) – 2021
• World Cup Record: 55.61, Cameron van der Burgh (RSA) – 2009

1. Nic Fink (USA), 56.43
2. Reece Whitley (USA), 57.06
3. Nicolo Martinenghi (ITA), 57.14
4. Bernhard Reitshammer (AUT), 57.86
5. Dawid Wiekiera (POL), 58.15
6. Matej Zabojnik (CZE), 58.56
7. Andrius Sidlauskas (LTU), 58.76
8. — Federico Poggio (ITA), DSQ

In a razor-thin three-way battle, Nic Fink got the job done to secure victory in the men’s 100 breast, using a sub-30 closing 50 (29.83) to touch first in a final time of 56.43.

Fink, the reigning short course world champion in both the 50 and 200 breast, pulled away from American teammate Reece Whitley (57.06) and Italian Nicolo Martinenghi (57.14) to earn the win, with his 56.43 clocking marking the fourth-fastest swim of his career. Fink swam a best of 55.56 during last year’s ISL Final.

Whitley, currently racing for Cal in the NCAA, was the surprise top qualifier out of the prelims in a best time of 57.06, matching that exactly in tonight’s final, while Martinenghi had a strong season-opening performance for third. The Italian is coming off a big summer that included winning the LC World Championship title in this event.

Austrian Bernhard Reitshammer made it four men under 58 seconds in 57.86. He set a new national record of 56.80 last year during the ISL season.

Women’s 50 free – final

• World Record: 22.93, Ranomi Kromowidjojo (NED) – 2017
• World Junior Record: 23.69, Anastasiya Shkurdai (BLR) – 2020
• World Cup Record: 22.93, Ranomi Kromowidjojo (NED) – 2017

1. Kasia Wasick (POL), 23.32
2. Meg Harris (AUS), 24.09
3. Erika Brown (USA), 24.10
4. Madison Wilson (AUS), 24.12
5. Michelle Coleman (SWE), 24.15
6. Marie Wattel (FRA), 24.20
7. Marrit Steenbergen (NED), 24.41
8. Silvia di Pietro (ITA), 24.50

Kasia Wasick put on a clinic in the final of the women’s 50 free, crushing the field by more than three-quarters of a second in a time of 23.32

That swim for the 30-year-old Wasick falls just two one-hundredths shy of her Polish Record (23.30), set last November in the ISL.

Australian Meg Harris snagged the runner-up spot from out in Lane 8, clocking 24.09 to edge out American Erika Brown (24.10), Aussie teammate Madison Wilson (24.12) and Swedish veteran Michelle Coleman (24.15).

Harris was actually ninth in the prelims (24.47) but was bumped up into the final after Beryl Gastaldello scratched out. Harris owns a best time of 23.84, set this past August.

Men’s 50 free – final

• World Record: 20.16, Caeleb Dressel (USA) – 2020
• World Junior Record: 20.98, Kenzo Simons (NED) – 2019
• World Cup Record: 20.48, Vladimir Morozov (RUS) – 2018

1. Dylan Carter (TTO), 20.77
2. Kyle Chalmers (AUS), 21.04
3. Florent Manaudou (FRA), 21.05
4. Karol Ostrowski (POL), 21.17
5. Vladyslav Bukhov (UKR), 21.28
6. Maxime Grousset (FRA), 21.31
7. Thom de Boer (NED), 21.32
8. Kenzo Simons (NED), 21.47

Dylan Carter ripped the first sub-21 swim of his career to overcome a stacked field in the men’s 50 free, blasting his way to a time of 20.77.

In addition to going well under his previous best of 21.09, Carter also broke a longstanding Trinidad & Tobago National Record, taking out George Bovell‘s 20.82 from 2012.

Carter was followed by Aussie Kyle Chalmers, who won this race in three out of the four World Cup stops last year, and Frenchman Florent Manaudou, the former world record holder.

Chalmers clocked 21.04, just off his winning time from the opening Berlin stop in 2021 (21.01), while Manaudou hit the wall in 21.05.

Women’s 100 IM – final

• World Record: 56.51, Katinka Hosszu (HUN) – 2017
• World Junior Record: 57.59, Anastasiya Shkurdai (BLR) – 2020
• World Cup Record: 56.51, Katinka Hosszu (HUN) – 2017

1. Beryl Gastaldello (FRA), 57.76
2. Beata Nelson (USA), 57.82
3. Anastasia Gorbenko (ISR), 58.57
4. Marrit Steenbergen (NED), 58.67
5. Ruta Meilutyte (LTU), 59.08
6. Louise Hansson (SWE), 59.14
7. Roos Vanotterdijk (BEL), 59.34
8. Emelie Fast (SWE), 1:00.14

Beryl Gastaldello showed that her scratch out of the 50 free final was a prudent one, as the Frenchwoman came through with a massive performance to win the women’s 100 IM in 57.76.

Gastaldello narrowly held off American Beata Nelson, out-touching her by six one-hundredths of a second, and was also within a half-second of her lifetime best and French Record of 57.30, which ranks her as the third-fastest performer ever.

Gastaldello’s time was notably quicker than what Anastasia Gorbenko went to win the SC world title last year (57.80), a race in which Gastaldello was the runner-up (57.96).

Nelson was just a tenth off her American Record to take second in 57.82, while Gorbenko rounded out the top three in 58.57.

Men’s 100 IM – final

• World Record: 49.28, Caeleb Dressel (USA) – 2020
• World Junior Record: 50.63, Kliment Kolesnikov (RUS) – 2018
• World Cup Record: 50.26, Vladimir Morozov (RUS) – 2018 (2x)

1. Thomas Ceccon (ITA), 51.52
2. Matt Sates (RSA), 51.62
3. Javier Acevedo (CAN), 51.74
4. Bernhard Reitshammer (AUT), 52.11
5. Mikel Schreuders (ARU), 53.25
6. Yakov Toumarkin (ISR), 53.35
7. Markus Lie (NOR), 53.89
8. Nikola Miljenic (CRO), 54.52

Italian Thomas Ceccon used his world-record backstroking form to open up an early lead in the men’s 100 IM, and then managed to fend off a late push from Matt Sates and Javier Acevedo to hold on for the win in a time of 51.52.

Ceccon narrowly misses his personal best time of 51.40, set last year when he won bronze at the World Championships, while Sates dipped under his old best by 12 one-hundredths in 51.62.

Acevedo dropped two one-hundredths from his previous best in 51.74, leaving him four one-hundredths off of the Canadian Record, held by Finlay Knox at 51.70.