BUDAPEST — Canadian swimmers Ilya Kharun and Ingrid Wilm won two medals each Wednesday at the short-course world championships.
Montreal's Kharun won silver in the men's 50-metre butterfly and Calgary's Wilm took bronze in the women's 100 backstroke.
They then joined Finlay Knox of Okotoks, Alta., and Kylie Masse of LaSalle, Ont., to win silver in the mixed 4x50 medley relay.
Kharun, who won two bronze medals at the Paris Olympics, finished the 50 butterfly in 21.67 seconds, holding off bronze medallist Nyls Korstanje of the Netherlands by one-hundredth of a second. Switzerland's Noe Ponti took gold in a world-record time of 21.32 seconds.
“It was very fun. Ponti is a very strong opponent and I’m really happy with my race," Kharun said. "It was a really good race to show what I can do for now but I can definitely show more power in the future."
Wilm finished the 100 backstroke in 55.75 seconds, behind Americans Regan Smith (54.55) and Katherine Berkoff (54.93). Masse, the two-time 100-metre backstroke long-course champion, was sixth.
“I was just coming in with no expectations to just try and have fun, so I’m actually really happy with that medal," said Wilm, who swam five times on Day 1 and three more Wednesday. "That was a wonderful surprise,”
The relay team finished in one minute 35.94 seconds, with a team of neutral athletes winning gold in 1:35.36 and the United States taking bronze in 1:36.20.
The relay medal was Masse’s 10th at world short-course championships, and 19th world medal overall, tying her with Maggie Mac Neil for most all-time between long course and short course. The 28-year-old has earned at least one medal at 15 consecutive major international championships and Games.
“It was a lot of fun. It’s nice to just get up and do a 50 and to have such a great team willing to just give it all they’ve got and put up a good race, you can’t beat that,” Masse said. “Obviously I wouldn’t be able to keep (the streak) alive without opportunities like this and teammates like this who have allowed me to get this medal and add to my streak."
Wilm has three medals in Budapest through two days of competition. She also teamed with Summer McIntosh and Penny Oleksiak, both from Toronto, and Mary-Sophie Harvey of Trois-Rivières, Que., to win bronze in the women's 4x100 freestyle relay Tuesday.
She won three bronze medals at the 2022 short-course championships in Melbourne, Australia, including the 100 backstroke and the 4x50 mixed medley relay.
Kharun is also a multi-medallist for the second straight short-course championships after winning a silver and a bronze in his international debut in 2022.
Knox now has two medals after claiming bronze in the men's 200 medley on Tuesday.
Canada has seven medals (one gold, two silver, four bronze) in Budapest so far, including McIntosh's world-record win in the women's 400 freestyle on Tuesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 11, 2024.
The Canadian Press
