Kate Douglass lauds Claire Curzan following the latter's victory at the World Aquatics Championships 2024
Kate Douglass has commended Claire Curzan on her recent exploit at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships.
The Championships commenced on February 2 and will end on February 18. While the swimming events began on February 11, Curzan achieved the notable feat of clinching the gold medal in the women's 100m backstroke on Day 3.
Curzan recorded a stunning 58.29 seconds to bag her first individual world title in 100m backstroke. The 19-year-old left behind Iona Anderson of Australia and Canada's Ingrid Wilm, who recorded 59.12 and 59.18 seconds, respectively. Curzan's victory time in Doha now stands as the 10th fastest time in women's 100m backstroke of all time.
Former University of Virginia swimmer Douglass applauded the current University of Virginia swimmer by sharing a post originally uploaded by USA Swimming. The national governing body informed the fans about Curzan's victory on social media and wrote:
"On top of the world 👑"
While Douglass represented the University of Virginia at the NCAA Championships from 2019 to 2023, Curzan transferred to the University in August 2023.
Moreover, Curzan also bagged a silver medal in the 100m butterfly event in Doha after recording 56.61 seconds, finishing behind Germany's Angelina Kohler, who clocked 56.28 seconds.
"Even go faster than last year is awesome" - Kate Douglass on her success at the 2024 World Championships
Kate Douglass displayed an exceptional performance at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka after securing two gold, three silver, and one bronze medal.
She clocked an impressive time of 2:07.17 to bag a gold medal in the women's 200m individual medley last year. At the ongoing World Championships, the 22-year-old continued her winning streak in the event, shaving off 0.12 seconds to clinch another gold medal by leaving behind Sydney Pickrem and Yu Yiting.
During a post-race interview with World Aquatics, Douglass shared her glee at the improvement in her time.
"To come back after winning in the summer and do it again and go even faster, it was an awesome feeling," she said.
"It’s great to win gold last summer and win here and even go faster than last year is awesome. I was hoping for a best time in this race, and I just got under my best but I am happy with that. To see 2:07 was awesome and to be able to do the best time right now in the season gets me excited to see what I can do in a few months," Douglass added.