2021 FINA WORLD CUP STOP #2 – BUDAPEST
- Thursday, October 7th – Saturday, October 9th
- Duna Arena, Budapest, Hungary
- SCM (25m)
- SwimSwam Preview
- Day 1 Prelims Recap/Day 1 Finals Recap
- Day 2 Prelims Recap
- Results
After setting a pair of new National Records at the opening stop of the 2021 FINA World Cup in Berlin, 20-year-old Slovenian Katja Fain carried that momentum into the second leg of the circuit in Budapest, re-lowering her national mark in the women’s 200 freestyle (SCM).
In Berlin, Fain swam to a time of 1:54.38, downing her previous Slovenian Record of 1:54.73 set in December 2020, and placing second to Australian Madi Wilson (1:54.00).
Battling head-to-head with Wilson once again in Budapest, Fain sliced just over a tenth off her best time to reset the record in 1:54.25, with Wilson just under two-tenths quicker than she was at the first stop to win in 1:53.82.
Fain split the race virtually identically over the first 100 meters in her two record swims, but really made her move on the third 50 in Budapest, throwing down a 29.09 split to be over three-tenths faster than she was in Berlin.
In her 1:54.73 swim from December, she was more aggressive on the opening 50 but slower the rest of the way.
Split Comparison
| Fain, December | Fain, Berlin | Fain, Budapest |
| 26.86 | 27.20 | 27.20 |
| 29.26 (56.12) | 29.14 (56.34) | 29.16 (56.36) |
| 29.51 (1:25.63) | 29.43 (1:25.77) | 29.09 (1:25.45) |
| 29.10 (1:54.73) | 28.61 (1:54.38) | 28.80 (1:54.25) |
A 2021 Slovenian Olympian, Fain also set a new National Record in the women’s 200 butterfly at the Berlin stop, clocking 2:07.04 to finish third and break the 11-year-old record of 2:07.97 set by Anja Klinar in 2010.
Fain also took fourth in the 200 IM (2:10.16) in Berlin, and through the first two days of competition in Budapest, she’s also claimed fifth in the women’s 400 free (4:03.52). She holds the National Record in that event, set in January 2019, at 4:01.79.
Fain was one of three swimmers to represent Slovenia at the Tokyo Olympic Games, placing 15th in the women’s 400 IM (4:44.66), 26th in the 800 free (8:41.13) and 30th in the 1500 free (16:35.92).
At the 2017 European Junior Championships, she was the bronze medalist in the women’s 400 free, producing a time of 4:11.36 at just 16 years of age.