Laure Manaudou deleted from shelves, Anastasiia Kirpichnikova breaks France’s oldest 1,500m record

After Léon Marchand, engaged on Sunday to cancel Michael Phelps’ latest world record, it is Laure Manaudou who is now being beaten by the new French swimming guard. Anastasiia Kirpichnikova took the French record for 1,500 meters during the World Aquatics Championships series in Fukuoka on Monday 24 July. Manaudou had held this mark since May 14, 2006, the oldest record in France for tricolor swimming.

Kirpichnikova set the tone, lowering her time by almost three seconds to 16’00″40, when Manaudou had set a 16’03″01 during the 2006 French championships in Tours. “I’m happy because in Rennes (at the French championships, June 12, ed), I missed this record by a small second, did he react?. And doing it here, in the morning, I am very happy.“With this performance, the sixth fastest time in the heats, the 23-year-old swimmer qualified for the 1,500m final on Tuesday.

“The medal, I believe it!”

For her first World Cup under the colors of France – Russian, she was naturalized French in April 2023 -, Kirpichnikova hopes to erase, with the 1,500m, the frustration of her first races in open water and over 400m. “Yesterday, in the 400 metres, it was very difficult, but it always is. I felt much better than yesterday. In the race there, I wanted to follow Lani Pallister and keep her feet at a good distance, that was my strategy. Tomorrow there will be the final and we will see. I hope to get a medal, I believe it. But it’s secret (laughs)!“

The European champion in the 1,500m short course in 2021 will no doubt have to lower her new record further to stand on the podium on Tuesday. Australian Lani Pallister, third on Monday, swam more than two seconds faster than Kirpichnikova (+2″29). A good distance from the queen of the distance, Katie Ledecky, as usual on another planet in the series, with almost 14 seconds ahead of the competition (15’41″22).

Interview with our special correspondent Quentin Ramelet, in Fukuoka.