BUDAPEST, Hungary — Canadian swimmer Kylie Masse will chase a third straight world title in the women's 100-metre backstroke Monday.
The 26-year-old from LaSalle, Ont., posted the second-fastest time in both the preliminaries and semifinals Sunday in Budapest.
Regan Smith of the U.S. was the quickest qualifier in 57.65 seconds.
Masse, a double backstroke silver medallist in last summer's Olympic Games in Tokyo, was on world-record pace in her semifinal heat at the halfway turn and finished in 58.57.
"’I’m happy to be getting through but I wasn’t expecting to go out that fast,’’ Masse said. ‘’It wasn’t necessarily what I was planning to do in that race.
‘’I’ll look at what I can improve upon. It will be stacked field as usual in the final. I look forward to the challenge.’’
Masse won gold in the 100-metre backstroke in both the 2017 and 2019 world championships.
Montreal's Marie-Sophie Harvey placed eighth in the women's 200-metre individual medley.
‘’I can’t really be mad because it was my first final at the worlds,’’ said the 22-year-old.
"It was a step in the right direction but not the time and placing I was aiming for."
Canada opened the biannual world championship with a pair of silver medals Saturday.
Toronto teenagers Summer McIntosh was second to American veteran Katie Ledecky in the 400-metre freestyle.
Canada's 4 x 100 freestyle relay team, anchored by Toronto's Penny Oleksiak, also took silver.
The world championship runs to July 3 with open-water races following pool competition.
Canada totalled eight medals in the pool (two gold, six bronze) plus an open-water bronze in the last world championship held in 2019 in Gwangju, South Korea.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 19, 2022.
The Canadian Press
