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| ▲ In this July 24, 2023, file photo, Lee Ju-ho of South Korea leaves the pool after competing in the heats for the men's 100-meter backstroke at the World Aquatics Championships at Marine Messe Fukuoka Hall A in Fukuoka, Japan. (Yonhap) |
swimming worlds-S Koreans
S. Korean Lee Ju-ho advances to men's 200m backstroke semifinals
By Yoo Jee-ho
FUKUOKA, Japan, July 27 (Yonhap) -- South Korean Lee Ju-ho advanced to his third straight semifinal in the men's 200-meter backstroke at the world swimming championships Thursday.
Lee tied for 10th place in the heats with a time of 1:57.99 at the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, as the top 16 from a group of 39 swimmers moved on to the semifinals.
The semifinals are scheduled for 9:33 p.m. Thursday. The top eight will qualify for Friday's final, and Lee will try to become the first South Korean man to reach a worlds final in a backstroke race.
Lee competed in the semifinals at each of the past two world championships, in 2019 and 2022. On both occasions, he finished in 12th place in the semifinals.
Lee owns the national record in the 200m backstroke at 1:56.77.
In the women's 100m freestyle heats, Hur Yeon-kyung finished in 20th place in 54.97 seconds, unable to join the top 16 bound for the semifinals. Hur ended 0.30 second behind the last qualifier, Rikako Ikee of Japan.
Kwon Se-hyun missed out on the semifinals in the women's 200m breaststroke, after clocking in at 2:27.93 for 23rd place.
In the men's 200m breaststroke, Cho Sung-jae ranked 26th in the heats with a time of 2:12.77.
The women's 4x200m freestyle relay team finished the heats in 15th place at 8:05.40. The top eight teams reached the final set for Thursday night.
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