When the 2023 World Swimming Championships ended in Fukuoka, Japan, the event left in its wake a series of prestigious achievements from the women participants. Records were broken, medals were grabbed, and it was a stupendous display of skills all around. From new and emerging champions to older and more experienced greats of swimming, all female swimmers gave one another a cutthroat competition. Here are some of the best performances given by female swimmers during the 2023 World Aquatics Championships.

Kaylee McKeown

There is no doubt that this Australian swimming champion absolutely dominated the 2023 World Aquatic Championships. She won in three backstroke categories, emerging victorious in the 50m, the 100m, and the 200m events. When she was disqualified from the women’s 200 IM due to what was declared an illegal turn while coming out of the backstroke, it seemed like a rocky start. However, she soon came back fighting, winning the World Championships gold in the 100m backstroke. Kaylee McKeown was able to break Regan Smith’s championship record time of 57.57 from 2019 after she clocked in a time of 57.53.

When she smashed Smith’s record, she became the overall 4th fastest female swimmer in the 100m backstroke. Her 50m backstroke win with a time of 27.08 broke the Oceanic record and propelled her to becoming the 3rd fastest swimmer in the history of the event. After winning titles in all three categories, Kaylee McKeown became the first woman in history to win the 50m, 100m, and 200m trinity in any category. Kaylee McKeown won three individual gold medals and was named the best female swimmer at the World Aquatics Championships 2023 in Fukuoka, Japan. She also won two silver medals in the mixed and women’s medley relays.

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Katie Ledecky

It has been a decade since the American swimming exponent has been killing it at the World Swimming Championships, and this year was no different. Katie Ledecky always owns the 800m and the 1500m, which she did again by getting dual individual titles in both. After winning gold medals in both these events, followed by 2 silver medals, she was able to top the legendary Michael Phelps to make it to the first place on the all-time list. The 1500m category was conquered by the American swimming champion, and she overtook her competition by a whopping 17 seconds.

In the event, her time of 15:26.27 was the third-fastest performance in history. When she won the 800m category once again, she became the first woman to get the title six times consecutively in any individual event in the history of the World Championships. While Australia surpassed America in the total number of gold medals, Katie Ledecky still dominated her events putting her country on the map in Fukuoka, Japan.

Mollie O’Callaghan

During the 2022 World Aquatics Championships, O’Callaghan was making up for the absence of Emma McKeon and the Campbell sisters. Prior to the 2023 World Aquatics Championships, news broke out that she had suffered a knee injury. This put the Australian swimming champion’s upcoming performances in doubt. However, she shone brightly during the swimming championships. She was a leading force in Australia’s world-record 4x100m relay, with a time of 52.08. Mollie O’Callaghan lowered her own best time by 0.41 seconds and became the 6th fastest woman in the history of women’s 100m freestyle. The 19-year-old was able to smash the oldest world record in women’s swimming during her 200m freestyle run with her time of 1:52.85.

The record she broke was previously held by Federica Pellegrini, a record the Italian achieved in 2009. when she broke the record, she became only the second woman to get a time sub-1:53. O’Callaghan’s unique swimming style led her to clinch a victory in the 100m freestyle with a time of 52.16.

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With her 100m and 200m wins, she became the first woman to win gold in both categories at the World Championships. By the end of the World Championships held in Fukuoka, Mollie O’Callaghan had won 5 gold medals and broken 4 world records, making her one of the most decorated female swimmers coming out of the 2023 World Swimming Championships.

Ariarne Titmus

The 2023 World Aquatics Championships were a playground for breaking records. And Ariarne Titmus from Australia was not ready to be left behind. There were some hurdles at the beginning of the World Swimming Championships. Mollie O’Callaghan defeated Arirarne Titmus in the 200m freestyle trials. After that, Summer McIntosh took down her 400m freestyle world record. These incidents put everyone in doubt- was the Australian swimming champion going home without an individual title? Not at all. In the finals of the 400m freestyle event, she took back her world record crown. She defeated her nearest competitor by over three seconds, leaving no doubt in the minds of the naysayers that Titmus was there to win and win big.

Ariarne Titmus finished with a time of 3:55.38, becoming the fastest in the category with a time of 0.7 seconds more than the others. She also became the first female swimmer to achieve a time sub-3:56. in the 200m freestyle event, the Australian swimming sensation was able to bag the silver medal. Titmus emerged forcefully a day later when she clocked in at 1:52.41 during Australia’s world record-breaking 4×200 free relay, becoming the fastest in the category. Then came the 800m freestyle, where she won the bronze medal with a time of 8:13.59. With her achievements, she has confirmed her place as one of the best mid-distance swimmers in the world.

Ruta Meilutyte

The breaststroke champion from Lithuania announced her retirement two years ago. Come the 2023 World Swimming Championships, she is topping the charts in sprint breaststroke and has become the long-course world record holder. When she emerged at Fukuoka, she was brutally picking off her competition from the get-go. In the prelims of the 100m breaststroke, Ruta Meilutyte finished with a time of 1:04.67. In the semi-finals of the category, she achieved the fastest time. During the finals, she won the event while clocking in a time of 1:04.62.

She conquered her nearest competitor by a margin of more than a second. In the 50m breaststroke event, the swimming expert from Lithuania first tied the world record with Benedetta Pilato after getting a time of 29.30. In the finals of the event, she broke that world record with a time of 29.16. With all her achievements, Ruta Meilutyte was able to amass prize money equalling $100,000. Only Mollie O’Callaghan won prize money higher than that.

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