Editorial content for the 2023 World Aquatics Championships is sponsored by FINIS, a longtime partner of Swimming World and leading innovator of suits, goggles and equipment. World Championships, Day Five Semifinals: Tatjana Schoenmaker Leads Tes Schouten, Americans in 200 Breast Four heavyweights will square off in the women’s 200 breaststroke final, and entering as favorite will be the Olympic gold medalist. Tatjana Schoenmaker became the first woman ever to break 2:19 in Tokyo, a race where Lilly King also joined the small group of sub-2:20 performers on her way to silver. Now, Schoenmaker and King will race again in a World Championships final, joined by two newer entrants into global contention in the event. The first semifinal featured the veterans, with Schoenmaker leading the way throughout while King distinguished herself on the last 50. In the second heat, 22-year-old Tes Schouten of the Netherlands led the way while 20-year-old Kate Douglass of the U.S. finished just behind her. Schoenmaker’s time of 2:21.31 was the best in the field as she jumped into fourth in the world rankings. Schouten went 2:21.71 for the second seed, tying her Dutch record set earlier this year. Douglass, at 2:21.99, was not far off her third-ranked time of 2:21.22, and King placed fourth in 2:22.68. King had a disappointing swim in the 100 breast final earlier in the meet, finishing fourth after entering with the top-ranked time in the world, so she will try to improve in the 200 breast after swimming the second-best time of her career (2:20.95) as she edged Douglass at U.S. Nationals. King was known for her skills in the sprint breaststroke events earlier in her career, but she is the defending world champion in the 200 breast. Two of these swimmers are medalists already in Fukuoka: Schoenmaker was the silver medalist behind Ruta Meilutyte in the 100 breast while Douglass has earned 200 IM gold, 400 free relay silver and mixed 400 medley relay bronze. Notably, Douglass will have two finals in the Friday evening session, beginning with the 100 free and then the 200 breast 40 minutes later. Denmark’s Thea Blomsterberg placed fifth in 2:23.19, with Australia’s Abbey Harkin (2:23.65), Lithuania’s Kotryna Teterevkova (2:24.12) and Canada’s Kelsey Wog (2:24.16) all got into the final. Notably, the world record in this event now belongs to Russia’s Evgeniia Chikunova, who swam a time of 2:17.55 to crush Schoenmaker’s Tokyo mark 2:18.95 earlier this year. All Russian swimmers remain banned from international competition following their country’s invasion of Ukraine.
