Day 2 Wrap at the World Aquatics Championships
Aquablack #279 Andrew Jeffcoat was the pick of the Kiwis on day two of the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka Japan.
Competing in the 100m Backstroke the Club 37 swimmer swam a solid heat of 53.82s to sit in 13th and book himself a semifinal spot.
The 24-year-old then flew home in his semi, touching the wall in 53.46s for a new PB, just outside the NZ Record. The time saw Jeffcoat just miss the cut for finals, placing 12th overall.
“The whole day was very positive, I feel like I got to enjoy the whole process and not be overwhelmed and managed for the first time in my career before a semi-final to look around and enjoy the atmosphere and the crowd before focusing back up and doing the job,” said Jeffcoat.
“The semi-final was special, I’m very grateful to be able to get up on the world stage and swim the fastest I’ve ever been. I feel like that’s a massive confidence booster and I’m glad I didn’t succumb to the pressure.”
Club 37 posted a message to their social media congratulating Jeffcoat.
“Millions will see this race but not many will know the effort that goes into making something like this happen. We count ourselves lucky to be part of Jeffcoat’s journey and couldn’t be prouder of him.”
It’s a great start to the campaign for Jeffcoat who will be back in the pool in the 50m and 200m backstroke in the coming days.
Olympian Helena Gasson was also in action in the women’s version of the same event. The Coast swimmer powering home in 1:00.83s to place 19th and just miss out on the semifinals.
Two New Zealanders were then in action in the women’s 1500m Freestyle, taking on the likes of American Katie Ledecky.
Caitlin Deans from Neptune Swim Club placed 16th in 16:24.56s, with Coast Swim Club’s Eve Thomas one place behind her in 16:24.88s.
Zac Reid was the last Kiwi in the pool, placing 41st in the men’s 200m Freestyle in a time of 1:51.66s.
Lewis Clareburt, Erika Fairweather, Joshua Gilbert and Zac Reid will be in action today as the competition continues at the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. The full Aquablacks World Aquatics schedule is available here.
And 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
