Australian Cameron McEvoy broke the 50m freestyle world record, swimming one length of a pool in 20.88 seconds at the China Open in Shenzhen on Friday.
McEvoy, the 2024 Olympic 50m free gold medalist, went three hundredths of a second faster than the previous record set by Brazilian Cesar Cielo in December 2009, just before the polyurethane suit ban went into effect starting in 2010.
With those super suits in 2008 and 2009, a world record was broken in every event that was on the Olympic program except the men's 1500m freestyle (and the women's 1500m free, which wasn't on the Olympic program then but was contested at World Championships).
Now, just six world records remain from 2008 or 2009 out of the 20 men's events and 20 women's events that are on the current Olympic program: men's 200m and 800m frees, 200m backstroke and 4x100m and 4x200m free relays and women's 200m butterfly.
Since Cielo set that 20.91 world record, the closest any swimmer got to it was Caeleb Dressel's 21.04 at the 2019 Worlds and the Olympic Trials in 2021. McEvoy won the 2023 Worlds in 21.06.
The World Athletics Indoor Championships 2026 is back in Torun with Team GB eyeing up success in a year without an Olympic Games or outdoor World Championships.
Josh Kerr will hope to land another gold in the men’s 3,000m after claiming gold in Glasgow two years ago, but he’ll have to topple his 1,500m nemesis from the Paris Games in the USA’s Cole Hocker. Jeremiah Azu took home a stunning gold in the last edition of World Indoors, with a sizzling men’s 60m win in Nanjing, China last year, but the Briton will have his work cut out this year with Jamaica's Kishane Thompson and the USA's Jordan Anthony and Trayvon Bromell providing stiff competition.
Amber Anning won women’s 400m gold last year, too, but she’ll skip this week’s championships to focus on the outdoor championships, with the Commonwealth Games and European Championships to come.
Keely Hodgkinson will be expected to land gold in the women’s 800m, while teammate Georgia Hunter Bell will also hope to claim glory in the women’s 1,500m.
Here’s the timetable and list of events across the three-day event this weekend:
Day 1 - Friday 20 March
Morning
9:05 AM: Men's 60 Metres, Heptathlon
9:20 AM: Men's 60 Metres Round 1
9:53 AM: Men's Long Jump Heptathlon
10:08 AM: Women's 400 Metres Round 1
10:39 AM: Women's High Jump final-medal Final
10:56 AM: Men's 400 Metres Round 1
11:38 AM Women's 800 Metres Round 1
11:57 AM Men's Shot Put Heptathlon
12:21 PM Men's 800 Metres Round 1
Evening session
5:10 PM: Women's Shot Put final-medal Final
5:16 PM: Men's High Jump Heptathlon
5:22 PM Women's 1500 Metres Round 1
5:54 PM: Men's 1500 Metres Round 1
6:35 PM: Men's Triple Jump final-medal Final
6:42 PM: Women's 400 Metres Semi-Final
7:16 PM: Men's 60 Metres Semi-Final
7:44 PM: Men's 400 Metres Semi-Final
8:22 PM: Men's 60 Metres final-medal Final
Azu hopes to defend his title in Torun (REUTERS)
Day 2 - Saturday 21 March
Morning session
9:05 AM: Men's 60 Metres Hurdles Heptathlon
9:20 AM: Men's 60 Metres Hurdles Round 1
10:05 AM: Women's 60 Metres Round 1
10:10 AM: Men's Pole Vault Heptathlon
11:00 AM: Mixed 4x400 Metres Relay final-medal Final
11:15 AM: Men's High Jump final-medal Final
11:22 AM: Women's 800 Metres Semi-Final
12:08 PM: Men's 800 Metres Semi-Final
Evening session
5:25 PM: Men's Pole Vault final-medal Final
5:34 PM: Men's 400 Metres final-medal Final
5:52 PM: Men's 1000 Metres Heptathlon
6:04 PM: Women's 3000 Metres final-medal Final
6:22 PM: Men's 3000 Metres final-medal Final
6:38 PM: Women's Triple Jump final-medal Final
6:48 PM: Men's 60 Metres Hurdles Semi-Final
7:14 PM: Women's 60 Metres Semi-Final
7:40 PM: Women's 400 Metres final-medal Final
8:02 PM: Men's 60 Metres Hurdles final-medal Final
8:20 PM: Women's 60 Metres final-medal Final
Britain's Keely Hodgkinson reacts after breaking the world record in the 800m Women final (AFP/Getty)
Day 3 - Sunday 22 March
Morning session
9:05 AM: Women's 60 Metres Hurdles Pentathlon
9:20 AM: Women's Long Jump final-medal Final
9:43 AM: Women's High Jump Pentathlon
9:48 AM: Men's 4x400 Metres Relay Round 1
10:23 AM: Men's Shot Put final-medal Final
11:05 AM: Women's 4x400 Metres Relay Round 1
11:55 AM: Women's 60 Metres Hurdles Round 1
12:21 PM: Women's Shot Put Pentathlon
Evening session
4:40 PM: Women's Long Jump Pentathlon
4:45 PM: Women's Pole Vault final-medal Final
5:38 PM: Men's 1500 Metres final-medal Final
5:51 PM: Women's 60 Metres Hurdles Semi-Final
6:12 PM: Men's Long Jump final-medal Final
6:22 PM: Women's 1500 Metres final-medal Final
6:38 PM: Men's 800 Metres final-medal Final
6:53 PM: Women's 800 Metres final-medal Final
7:03 PM: Women's 800 Metres Pentathlon
7:13 PM: Women's 60 Metres Hurdles final-medal Final
7:26 PM: Men's 4x400 Metres Relay final-medal Final
7:47 PM: Women's 4x400 Metres Relay final-medal Final
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