SWIMMING AT THE 2018 ASIAN GAMES
- August 19th-24th, 2018
- Jakarta, Indonesia
- Schedule & Results
In her first swim of the 2018 Asian Games, Japanese 18-year old Rikako Ikee broke the Meet Record in thee 100 freestyle on a leadoff leg for Japan’s 400 free relay.
Ikee split 53.60, which broke the 2010 record set by China’s Tang Yi at 54.12.
Ikee swam a 53.0 at the Japanese Championships in April, which is her season best, and was a 53.1 in the final at Pan Pacs. Japan traditionally uses Ikee as their leadoff on this relay, and she’s typically slower in that role than in her individual events (at Pan Pacs, she was about three-tenths off).
Japan had enough to hold on for the relay win and a second Games Record, in 3:36.52. That broke China’s 2010 record of 3:36.88. China also slid a tenth-of-a-second under that old record for silver.
The win was Japan’s first in this relay since 1994, breaking a streak of 5-straight China gold medals.
Japan’s record-breaking splits:
- Rikako Ikee, 18 years old, 53.60
- Natsumi Sakai, 17 years old, 54.81
- Tamoma Aoki, 23 years old, 54.21
- Chihiro Igarashi, 23 years old, 53.90
The swim also broke Japan’s National Record that was set at the 2016 Olympic Games in 3:36.74
The splits of the old Japanese Record-setting relay:
- Miki Uchida, 53.93
- Rikako Ikee, 53.41
- Misaki Yamaguchi, 54.87
- Yayoi Matsumoto, 54.53