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Sjöström breaks world record twice in 24 hours

August 3, 2015

Most swimmers would happy with one world record in their career, but Sweden's Sarah Sjöström managed two in a day. Elsewhere on Monday, there was also a gold for a young Briton at the World Swimming Championships.

Russland Schwimm-WM 2015 Sarah Sjöström Weltrekord
Image: Reuters/M. Dalder

Sweden's Sarah Sjöström broke the women's 100m butterfly world record for the second time in 24 hours to win gold in the final at the world swimming championships on Monday. The 21-year-old clocked 55.64 seconds in the final to shave 0.15secs off the record she set in Sunday's semifinal. Denmark's Jeanette Ottesen took silver in 57.05 with China's Lu Ying claiming bronze with 57.48.

Also a winner in Kazan, Russia, was Britain's Adam Peaty. The 20-year-old won the men's 100m breaststroke gold on his world championship debut, swimming 58.52 seconds to beat Olympic champion Cameron van der Burgh of South Africa by 0.07secs on the wall. Britain's Ross Murdoch took bronze at 0.57secs back.

Earlier, American teenager Katie Ledecky set a new world record in the final heat of the 1500m freestyle with a time of 15:27.71. "I think breaking that record is just a testament to the work I've put in and the shape that I'm in right now ... that I was able to do that, I'm in quite a bit of shock right now."

Ledecky, who has already won the 400m free, is the odds-on favorite to retain her title in the Tuesday final having qualified more than 26 seconds ahead of Denmark's Lotte Friis, the second fastest women in the world.

France's Florent Manaudou won the men's 50m fly world title with a time of 22.97, with Nicholas Santos of Brazil winning silver at 0.12 seconds back. Hungary's Laszlo Cseh took bronze.

jh/ (AFP, dpa)
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