Seventh Seed Mollie O’Callaghan No-Shows Women’s 50 Back Prelims

2023 WORLD AQUATICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

• July 23 to 30, 2023
• Fukuoka, Japan
• Marine Messe Fukuoka
• LCM (50m)
• WORLD CHAMPS WATCH PARTY – DAILY
• Meet Central
• SwimSwam Preview Index
• Entry Book
• 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
• Day 4 Prelims Live Recap

Australia’s Mollie O’Callaghan, the seventh overall seed in the women’s 50 back at the 2023 World Championships, no-showed the preliminary heats of the event on Wednesday morning. She had been seeded with a time of 27.38, which was her personal best time from the NSW State Open Championships this March.

O’Callaghans 50 back best time would have taken silver at 2022 Worlds.

Dropping the 50 back will give O’Callaghan the opportunity to go all-in on the 200 free, as the 50 back semis will happen approximately 20 minutes after the 200 free final on Thursday night. In addition, the move will leave O’Callaghan fresher for the mixed medley relay if she ends up swimming it.

Australia named Shayna Jack, who had the fastest rolling split on the women’s 4×100 free relay, as the anchor of their mixed medley relay in prelims. If Jack gets swapped out for finals, O’Callaghan will likely be her replacement, as she has a flat start personal best of 52.08 that could convert to a 51-mid split on a relay.

This year is not the first year that O’Callaghan has entered in backstroke events at Worlds just to drop them altogether. Prior to the 2022 Worlds, she was scheduled to race the 50, 100, and 200 back but scratched out of the events three weeks before the meet started. Then, after finishing second in the 100 back at the 2023 Australian trials, she also opted not to swim the event at Worlds.

O’Callaghan is the third seed in the 200 free final (1:54.91), behind Ariarne Titmus (1:54.64) and Summer McIntosh (1:54.67).