Day 8 Wrap at the World Aquatics Championships
Andrew Jeffcoat’s seventh placing in the 50m Backstroke was the icing on the cake day for the Aquablacks on the final day of competition at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka.
The Club 37 swimmer held his composure in his first ever World Championship final, swimming a blistering 24.66s, just .01 of a second off his PB.
The swim placed Jeffcoat seventh in the world and is a fantastic result ahead of the 2024 World Aquatics Championships and the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
In the day’s other action New Zealand was in the pool in the new men’s 4x100m medley. Unfortunately, Cameron Gray mistimed his relay exchange with the incoming Lewis Clareburt by 0.04 of a second, resulting in disqualification.
The disappointment was short lived as the team reflected on a great campaign which saw four individual finals, three additional semi-finals, two New Zealand records, and a bronze medal to Erika Fairweather in the 400m Freestyle.
Swimming New Zealand Olympic Pathway Lead Gary Francis says it’s been a fantastic eight days of competition.
“The whole team is really proud of the results they’ve achieved here in Fukuoka,” said Francis.
“Erika’s medal is without a doubt the highlight but I want to acknowledge all the team members for giving it their all and for representing New Zealand really well on the world stage.”
Francis says the results bode well ahead of a huge year of competition.
“We have another World Champs in Doha in February, followed by the Olympics in Paris in July and August.
“This has given us a really good indication of where we’re at, we can take a lot away form this meet in terms of things we’re doing well and things we can work on so it's an exciting time ahead of a huge 12 months.”
The team now returns home as the Para swimmers get their turn at the Para Swimming World Championships in Manchester.
Make sure you follow Swimming NZ on Instagram and Facebook for all the behind-the-scenes info.
Aquablacks Team
Lewis Clareburt (#257) Capital Swim Club
· 200, 400 IM
· 100, 200 Butterfly
· 4x100 Medley Relay
Chelsey Edwards (#265) Coast Swim Club
· 100 Freestyle
· 4x100 Mixed Free Relay
Erika Fairweather (#266) Neptune Swim Club
· 200, 400, 800 Freestyle
· 4x200 Free Relay
· 4x100 Mixed Free Relay
Michael Pickett (#268) Club 37
· 50 Freestyle
Zac Reid (#269) Neptune Swim Club
· 200, 400 Freestyle
Eve Thomas (#270) Coast Swim Club
· 400, 800, 1500 Freestyle
· 4x200 Free Relay
Caitlin Deans (#276) Neptune Swim Club
· 1500 Freestyle
· 4x200 Free Relay
Cameron Gray (#277) Coast Swim Club
· 50 Butterfly
· 100 Freestyle
· 4x100 Medley Relay
· 4x100 Mixed Free Relay
Andrew Jeffcoat (#279) Club 37
· 50m, 100m, 200m Backstroke
· 4x100 Medley Relay
Helena Gasson (#250) Coast
· 50m Butterfly
· 100m Backstroke
Carter Swift (#282) Club 37
· 4x100 Mixed Free Relay
Hazel Ouwehand (#283) Phoenix Aquatics
· 50m Butterfly
Joshua Gilbert - Club 37
· 50, 100, 200 Breast
· 4x100 Medley Relay
Luan Grobbelaar - Neptune
· 400m Individual Medley
Summer Osborne - North Shore
· 4x200 Free Relay
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