Singapore swimmer Letitia Sim sets new national record, meets Olympic qualification mark

SINGAPORE: Singapore swimmer Letitia Sim met the 2024 Paris Olympics “A” cut for the women’s 100m breaststroke on Thursday (Nov 30) as she finished second in the event at the Japan Open.

Sim’s time of 1:06.36 also meant that she rewrote her previous national record of 1:06.86, set last month, as she clinched silver behind Japan’s Reona Aoki at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre.

The Olympic qualifying time for the women’s 100m breaststroke is 1:06.79.

It has been a stellar year for the 20-year-old, who won multiple gold medals at the Southeast Asian Games in May.

She then registered two fourth-place finishes in the 100m and 200m breaststroke events at the Hangzhou Asian Games and also set a new national record in the 50m breaststroke where she finished seventh.

Last month, she set two national records – in the 200m breaststroke as well as the 100m breaststroke – at a World Aquatics Swimming World Cup event in Berlin.

Sim is the second Singapore swimmer to make the Olympic “A” cut this year, after Jonathan Tan.

Tan set a Games and national record of 21.91s in the 50m freestyle heats at the SEA Games in May. The Olympic qualifying time for the event is 21.96s.

Tan went on to clinch gold in the event.