IRVINE, Calif. (AP) — Kate Douglass lowered her own world record in the women’s 50-meter freestyle for the second time Saturday, winning the final in 23.19 seconds.
In the morning preliminaries, she swam 23.49 to take the mark away from teammate Gretchen Walsh, who finished second in the evening final in 23.74.
Walsh had owned the record of 23.55 since June when she set the mark at an international meet in Rome.
It’s the third time Douglass has lowered the world mark in the sprint race. She first did it on June 19 at the TYR Pro Swim Series meet in Indianapolis, posting a time of 23.59. Nine days later, Walsh lowered it again.
Douglass, 24, is a five-time Olympic medalist. She earned silver in the 50 free at the 2024 world championships but didn’t compete in the event at the 2024 Paris Games.
It was the second individual world record set at the meet that includes swimmers from the U.S., Australia, Canada, Japan and China, among others.
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