2017 FINA WORLD SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Sunday, July 23rd – Sunday, July 30th
- Budapest, Hungary
- LCM (50m)
- Full Competition Schedule
- Meet Info
- Psych Sheets
- Omega Results
- Pick ’em Contest
- Event-by-Event Previews
Syrian refugee swimmer Yusra Mardini was in familiar territory when she made the trip to Budapest, Hungary to compete at the 2017 FINA World Championships. Mardini, who competed in the 200 free and 100 fly this week as an independent FINA athlete, had been in Budapest before after she famously swam for 3 hours in the Aegean Sea, with the help of her sister, to pull a boat carrying 20 people to safety. After pulling the boat to safety, she made a 25-day overland journey to Germany, stopping in Budapest along the way.
In Budapest, Mardini and her sister slept in a train station and weren’t staying under favorable conditions. They had trouble with the police, and she recounts receiving help from a taxi driver who drove fast enough to help the sisters escape:
“It was like a Hollywood movie how fast he was driving. I don’t know if he’ll ever remember me but I’m really thankful.”
She then promised herself she would return to the city one day, but under different circumstances. She kept that promise when she arrived to compete with the best swimmers in the world.
“They told me that the world championships would be in Budapest. I was really shocked.”
Mardini swam the 200 free in 2:15.80 and the 100 fly in 1:07.99. That time in the 100 fly is over a second faster than she went at the 2016 Rio Olympics last summer. She plans to continue competing at least through the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.
DAY 4 RECORDS – ASIA:
- Women’s 200 Free: Siobhan Haughey, Hong Kong Record, 1:55.96
- Mixed 400 Medley Relay: China (Xu Jiayu, Yan Zibei, Zhang Yufei, Zhu Menghui), Asian Record, 3:41.25
- Mixed 400 Medley Relay: China (Xu Jiayu, Yan Zibei, Zhang Yufei, Zhu Menghui), Chinese Record, 3:41.25
DAY 4 SWIMMING MEDAL TABLE – ASIA:
| Country | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| China | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Japan | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |