Sarah Sjostrom posted 24.68 in the 50 free heats as she made her competitive return to the water following elbow surgery at the second leg of the Mare Nostrum series in Canet, France.
The triple Olympic medallist sustained the injury to her right elbow when she slipped on ice in February and subsequently underwent surgery.
Sjostrom – who set the world record of 23.67 at the 2017 World Championships in Budapest – clocked the second-fastest time in prelims behind Olympic champion Pernille Blume who went 24.53.
Blume and Sjostrom were the only women to go sub-25secs and also of note was the presence of Therese Alshammar who won silver in the 50 free among a three-medal haul at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.
The 43-year-old posted 25.83 to qualify for Tuesday’s final in sixth.
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