Kliment Kolesnikov Reigns in 50 Backstroke; Can Russian Extend Dominance to 100 Distance?
Last month, while racing at the Chinese National Championships, veteran Xu Jiayu blasted an Asian record in the 50-meter backstroke, going 23.92 for the one-lap sprint. The 30-year-old’s time cut a massive .32 from the previous continental standard, set in 2009 by Japan’s Junya Koga. The former record, it is worth noting, was established at the 2009 World Championships, the height of the super-suit era.
Historically, there have been 14 sub-24 performances, spread between four athletes. In addition to Xu, Americans Hunter Armstrong (23.71) and Justin Ress (23.92) have accomplished the feat once, while Russia’s Kliment Kolesnikov has gone 23-point on 11 occasions to dominate the event. More impressive, Kolesnikov owns the three-fastest times ever produced, including the world record of 23.55.
What Kolesnikov has managed in the 50 backstroke is akin to the excellence of Great Britain’s Adam Peaty in the 50 breaststroke and 100 breaststroke and Hungarian Kristof Milak in the 200. Peaty owns eight of the 10-fastest times in the 50 breast and the 14-quickest marks in the 100 breast. As for Milak, he possesses five of the six-fastest performances in the 200 butterfly.
This summer, Kolesnikov will compete at the European Championships in Paris as a Neutral Athlete, since Russia is still not cleared for national recognition by European Aquatics due to its war on Ukraine. At Euros, Kolesnikov will be the heavy favorite for gold in the 50 backstroke, and with the sprint disciplines added to the Olympic program, a gold medal at LA28 is certainly a target.
At Euros, Kolesnikov is also expected to contest the 100 backstroke and the sprint freestyles, although countryman Egor Kornev is Russia’s No. 1 contender in the freestyle events. The question concerning Kolesnikov is whether he can be a factor in the 100 backstroke, which was formerly the case. Although he was the silver medalist in the 100 back at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo and owns a best time of 51.82, he has not been consistent over two laps.
As the summer progresses, look for Kolesnikov to rule his prime event, with intrigue surrounding his ability to return to a significant presence over two laps.
