Great Britain Breaks Oldest British Record on the Books in Friday’s Prelims

2019 LEN EUROPEAN SHORT COURSE CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Wednesday, December 4th – Sunday, December 8th
• Tollcross International Swimming Centre, Glasgow, Scotland
• SCM
• Entry List 
• Competition Schedule
• Results Documents 
• Live Video – LEN TV
• Day 1 Prelims Live Recap
• Day 1 Finals Live Recap
• Day 2 Prelims Live Recap
• Day 2 Finals Live Recap

The British women’s 4×50 freestyle relay has knocked down the longest standing British Swimming Record, which dated back nearly 20 years.  The team made up of Freya Anderson, Georgia Davies, Anna Hopkin and Siobhan O’Connor swam a 1:36.21, taking over two seconds off the previous mark of 1:38.39, set at the 2000 European Championships in Valencia, Spain.

Comparative Splits:

• European Champs 2000 – Alison Sheppard (24.61), Sue Rolph (24.79), Karen Pickering (24.50), Rosalind Brett (24.49)
• European Champs 2019 – Anna Hopkin (23.72), Siobhan-Marie O’Connor (24.32), Georgia Davies (24.44), Freya Anderson (23.72)

Women’s 4x50m Freestyle Finals Qualifiers:

1.Netherlands 1.35.66
2.Great Britain 1.36.21
3.Denmark 1.36.49
4.Russia 1.36.75
5.France 1.36.82
6.Poland 1.37.63
7.Germany 1.38.58
8.Slovenia 1.39.05

The British Record was fast enough to give them a second place finish in the prelims, just behind the Netherlands, with a 1:35.66. Third was Denmark with a 1:36.49. If Great Britain reaches the podium tonight in the relay, it will be their first SC Euros medal in the event since 2000’s record breaking swim, where they captured silver.

Slovenia (6th) and Poland (8th) also broke their national records by 3 seconds and 0.2 seconds, respectively.

Sweden’s 10th place finish in the prelims means that the silver medalists from the 2017 SC Euro champs won’t have a chance at a podium finish tonight (assuming no scratches).

This swim marked the second British Record of the session, as powerhouse Duncan Scott swam to a 1:52.33, breaking the previous record of 1:53.77. Scott will return in the final, facing off against Greece’s Andreas Vazaios (2nd) and Norway’s Tomoe Zenimoto Hvas (3rd) who both set their own respective national records at 1:52.38 and 1:53.74.