Singapore 2025: European record-breaker Kos, Steenbergen and Great Britain 4x200m freestyle relay team earn gold on swimming day six

Europeans secured three of the five available golds on day six of swimming at the World Aquatics Championships as Hungary’s Hubert Kos regained the men’s 200m backstroke title in a European record, Great Britain was victorious in the men’s 4x200m freestyle and Marrit Steenbergen of The Netherlands retained the women’s 100m freestyle title.

Kos, the Olympic 200m backstroke champion and 2023 world champion, clocked 1:53.19 as he finished ahead of Pieter Coetze, who took silver in an African record of 1:53.36, with bronze going to France’s Yohann Ndoye-Brouard in 1:54.62.

The 21-year-old South African overtook Kos to reach the halfway point in the lead – 54.48 to 54.64 – but could not maintain his standing as the 22-year-old Paris 2024 gold medallist finished strongly to lower the European record of 1:53.23 set in 2021 by Russia’s Evgeny Rylov.

Kos, who earned bronze in the men’s 200m individual medley won by France’s Leon Marchand, told World Aquatics: “Yeah it was great. I’ll be honest, I don’t feel great after that. I’ve had a tough schedule here but I’m really, really happy with how things are going now.

“I’ve given it all, left everything in the pool. Could have been better, but after the tough session I had yesterday with the 200 IM, this was all I could swim. A full second better than my PB, a new European record – I know I should be more joyful but, excuse me to say this, I threw up my lunch after the final, right in the mixed zone, so I’m in the middle of my recovery now!

“Of course, it’s good to win another world title, I’m proud of that, also to have two medals at the Worlds, a first for me. But all I see now that the guys are getting better, faster so I need to work really hard.

“They are closing the gap, I am getting closer to the world record – both give me great motivation for the coming months.”

Great Britain regained the title they won at the 2023 World Championships as they came home in 6:59.84, with China taking silver in an Asian record of 7:00.91 and bronze going to Australia in 7:00.98.

The British team earned a first medal for their country at these Championships thanks to three of the swimmers who claimed gold in this event at the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics in James Guy, Matt Richards and Duncan Scott, with Jack McMillan making up the quartet.

Guy commented: “To win a world championship after an Olympic gold is pretty special. It means the world to us. That’s the third year in a row – Worlds 2023, Olympics last year, and then Worlds again this year -where we’ve managed to win this race every time, which is a huge achievement.

“I’d be lying if I said we weren’t aware that we hadn’t got on the medal table yet. Obviously it’s been a difficult week for us all over. We’re learning, it’s the first year of the cycle, it’s not necessarily about winning golds right now, it’s about building and learning into the next block.

“But we were aware that we hadn’t made it onto the table yet so we really wanted to put in a performance tonight and not just get ourselves onto the medal table but get ourselves a gold.”

Steenbergen, 25, successfully defended the title she won in Doha las year as she clocked 52.55, with Australia’s 200m freestyle gold medallist Mollie O’Callaghan taking silver in 52.89 and bronze going to the United States’ Torri Huske in 52.89.

The American swimmer, who finished second in this event at the Paris 2024 Olympics behind Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrum – taking time out this year – turned in 25.16, with Steenbergen and O’Callaghan both clocking 25.34, but could not hold onto her lead.

Steenbergen’s 20-year-old team-mate Milou Van Wijk, who won the 50m and freestyle titles at the recent European Aquatics U23 Championships in Samorin, Slovakia, finished fourth in 52.91.

Steenbergen, who already had a bronze from the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay, commented: “After the relay, I knew I was in a good shape. But I was getting more nervous throughout the week. Tonight, I was feeling it a bit, I just tried to keep myself calm.

“To race the girls here, it’s always like, I want to win, but they’re so good, you know? I just tried to do my best…”

The Dutch team also figured on the men’s 200m breaststroke podium as their Paris 2024 bronze medallist Caspar Corbeau finished third in 2:07.73 in a race won by China’s 2023 world champion Haiyang Qin in 2:07.41, with silver going to Ippei Watanabe of Japan in 2:07.70.

Britain’s Angharad Evans finished fifth in a women’s 200m breaststroke final won by Kate Douglass of the United States in an American and Championship record of 2:18.50 from neutral athlete Evgeniia Chikunova and Kaylene Corbett of South Africa.

Tomorrow’s men’s 100m butterfly looks like being another highly interesting contest from a European perspective.

Switzerland’s Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist Noe Ponti, who took silver behind Maxime Grousset of France in the 50m butterfly, qualifying fastest in 50.18. Grousset went through third fastest in 50.25 behind Canada’s Josh Liendo, the Paris 2024 silver medallist, who clocked 50.24.

Serbia’s Andrej Barna qualified third fastest into tomorrow’s men’s 50m freestyle final behind Australia’s Olympic champion Cameron McEvoy and Jack Alexy of United States.

Mike Rowbottom for European Aquatics

The post Singapore 2025: European record-breaker Kos, Steenbergen and Great Britain 4x200m freestyle relay team earn gold on swimming day six first appeared on European Aquatics®.