2019 EUROPEAN JUNIOR SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Wednesday, July 3rd – Sunday, July 7th
- Aquatics Palace, Kazan, Russia
- LCM
- Meet Site
- Entry List
- Day 1 Prelims Recap
- Live Result
- Live Stream
Antonio Djakovic executed a brilliant race to win the men’s 400 freestyle at the European Junior Championships in Kazan, touching in a time of 3:47.89 for a new Swiss National Record.
Djakovic’s swim breaks the previous mark held by Olympic finalist Dominik Meichtry, who swam a 3:49.11 back at the 2011 Swim Cup in Eindhoven.
Take a look at a comparison of the splits between the two below:
| Meichtry, 2011 | Djakovic, 2019 |
| 26.79 | 26.13 |
| 55.60 (28.81) | 55.12 (28.99) |
| 1:24.86 (29.26) | 1:24.17 (29.05) |
| 1:54.30 (29.44) | 1:53.23 (29.06) |
| 2:23.42 (29.12) | 2:22.57 (29.34) |
| 2:52.31 (28.89) | 2:51.95 (29.38) |
| 3:21.50 (29.19) | 3:20.71 (28.76) |
| 3:49.11 (27.61) | 3:47.89 (27.18) |
Coming in with a personal best of 3:49.27, Djakovic took the lead at the 150 and then stayed slightly out in front of Russian Aleksandr Egorov throughout the rest of the race before sealing the deal with the fastest final 50 in the field of 27.18.
Egorov touched second in 3:48.28 for a new personal best, while Sweden’s Robin Hanson was a distant third in 3:50.53.
The European Junior Championship Record stands at 3:46.26, set by current SCM 400 free world record holder Frenchman Yannick Agnel in 2010.
Djakovic’s next best events are the 100 and 200 freestyle, both of which Meichtry holds the Swiss Record as well. The 16-year-old holds bests of 49.83 and 1:48.57 respectively, while Meichtry’s records stand at 48.55 and 1:45.80, both from the 2008 Olympic Games.