Doha 2024, Day 3 North America Recap: Curzan Claims First Individual World Title In 100 BK

2024 WORLD AQUATIC CHAMPIONSHIPS

• February 11th – February 18th
• Doha, Qatar
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Central
• SwimSwam Preview Index
• Official Entries
• Live Results (Omega)
• Day 1 Prelims Live Recap | Day 1 Finals Live Recap
• Day 2 Prelims Live Recap | Day 2 Finals Live Recap
• Day 3 Prelims Live Recap | Day 3 Finals Live Recap

After an up-and-down 2023 that included missing the U.S. World Championship team, Claire Curzan completed her return to the top of the sport on Tuesday as she roared to her first individual world title.

Curzan came through as the big favorite in the final of the women’s 100 backstroke, rocketing to gold by more than eight-tenths of a second in 58.29, a new lifetime best that slots her into the top-10 all-time.

After breaking onto the senior international stage in 2021, making the U.S. Olympic team at the age of 16 before winning a silver medal in the women’s 400 medley relay in Tokyo, Curzan had a monstrous 2022 with five medals at the World Championships in Budapest—including two relay golds and a bronze in the 100 back—and followed up with seven medals at the Short Course World Championships in Melbourne.

Then last year, after winning the NCAA title in the 200 back as a freshman at Stanford, Curzan failed to qualify for the World Championships at U.S. Nationals, and it was later learned that she fell ill shortly before the meet and almost scratched.

After changing training bases from Stanford to Virginia last summer, Curzan has been back on an upward trajectory, and it all came to a head in Doha.

She set a new personal best of 58.35 in the 100 back at the U.S. Open in late November, and came into the 2024 Worlds as the big favorite for gold in the absence of world record holder Kaylee McKeown and American Record holder Regan Smith.

Curzan took full advantage, storming to the title in 58.29 to move up from #12 to #10 all-time, leapfrogging Americans Olivia Smoliga and Missy Franklin.

All-Time Performers, Women’s 100 Backstroke (LCM)

1. Kaylee McKeown (AUS), 57.33 – 2023
2. Regan Smith (USA), 57.57 – 2019
3. Kylie Masse (CAN), 57.70 – 2021
4. Kathleen Baker (USA), 58.00 – 2018
5. Katharine Berkoff (USA), 58.01 – 2023
6. Kathleen Dawson (GBR), 58.08 – 2021
7. Gemma Spofforth (GBR), 58.12 – 2009
8. Anastasiia Fesikova (RUS), 58.18 – 2009
9. Emily Seebohm (AUS), 58.23 – 2012
10. Claire Curzan (USA), 58.26 – 2024

“It’s awesome. I mean, seeing the national anthem rise and knowing I swam, that was, I think, unlike anything I’ve ever done before and experienced,” Curzan said on winning her first individual title. “So, hopefully, I’ll be able to do that again, but (I’m) really happy with how it went.”

Regarding her new best time, Curzan pointed to her back half—30.04, just shy of the 29.73 she closed in when setting her PB at the U.S. Open—and how that shows her training at UVA is paying off.

“I’m really happy with just how I split the race. I think that was one of the best second 50s I’ve ever had. So I think that’s kind of a testament to my training, and I’m excited for just what that means for the future.”

In reality, Curzan has always been an elite closer, having been 30.07 at the 2022 U.S. Open in what was her previous fastest swim before joining Virginia.

Split Comparison

Curzan also spoke on returning to the major international stage after missing the 2023 World Championships.

“I was really happy just watching the Americans at Fukuoka,” she said. “They did an incredible job, qualified all of our relays, which is super exciting. But, I am honored to be back here again. Excited that I’m actually at Worlds this time. And I’m really happy with how the meet’s going so far and just excited to continue doing as many events as I’m able to do.”

Having also won silver in the women’s 100 fly on Monday, Curzan has remaining entries in the 50 back, 200 back and 50 fly. She added that she’s using this meet to gain experience with the three-round format that you don’t often see in domestic competition.

“I think I’ll be able to use (the 100 back) experience just to apply it through the rest of my races,” she said. “I pretty much know what target events I want to swim, but just more gaining experience with the prelims, semis and finals format since that’s very unique to this time of year. And really just getting used to swimming that many times and how to progress through those appropriately.”

Other Day 3 Highlights

• American Luke Hobson won bronze in the men’s 200 freestyle in a time of 1:45.26, moving up two spots from last year’s result while coming within four-tenths of his PB (1:44.87).
• After winning the 100 breast on Monday, Nic Fink advanced 3rd overall into the final of the men’s 50 breast with a time of 26.77 in the semis. Fink won the 50 breast world title in 2022 and owns a best of 26.45.
• Racing alongside Curzan in the 100 back, Canadian Ingrid Wilm won bronze in a time of 59.18, marking the first individual medal of her career at LC Worlds. Wilm, who won bronze in the women’s medley relay in both Budapest and Fukuoka, added in her post-race interview that winning the medal in Doha had extra special meaning.
• “It’s a pretty full circle getting my first long course individual medal in the same city and country where I started competitive swimming, so it feels pretty special,” Wilm said. “It was exciting, very tight from second to fourth so I’m feeling pretty fortunate for my long arms on that touch there.”
• American Hunter Armstrong emerged with gold in the men’s 100 back in 52.68, edging out Spaniard Hugo Gonzalez (52.70) for his first world title in the event after claiming bronze in 2022 and 2023.
• Canada’s Sophie Angus placed 8th in the final of the women’s 100 breast (1:07.09) after shattering her lifetime best in 1:06.66 in the semis.

North American Medals Table Through Day 2