The Dutch women broke the World Record in the 200 free relay on Sunday to start the final day of the 2014 World Short Course Championships in Doha, Qatar, swimming to a 1:34.24. That broke the official World Record that they set in prelims at 1:35.74.
The splits:
- Inge Dekker – 24.09
- Femke Heemskerk – 23.24
- Maud van der Meer – 24.03
- Ranomi Kromowidjojo – 22.88
Those are four top-notch splits for one country to put together, yet this time still left the Dutch a full second away from their own National Record and the European Record of 1:33.25 done at the 2009 European Championships. There, Dekker (23.53), Hinkelien Schreuder (22.81), Saskia de Jonge (23.88), and Ranomi Kromowidjojo (23.03) swam together for a 1:33.25 that is still the fastest time we know of on record.
I’m confused. Don’t you mean they broke the World s/c Championship Record? How can their European/National Records be faster than the World Record?