The 200 metres breaststroke is an event in competitive swimming. World records are ratified by World Aquatics (formerly FINA). The current long course world record holders are Japan's Shin Ohashi and Russia's Evgeniia Chikunova, while the current short course world record holders are the Netherlands' Caspar Corbeau and the US' Kate Douglass.
The men's event was first contested at the Olympic Games in 1908, while the women's event was introduced at the 1924 games; the current Olympic champions are France's Léon Marchand, and Douglass. The men's and women's events have been contested at the World Aquatics Championships since the inaugural championships in 1973; the current world champions (long course) are China's Qin Haiyang, and Douglass. The men's and women's events have been contested at the World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) since the inaugural championships in 1993; the current world champions (short course) are Spain's Carles Coll, and Douglass.
World record progression
Men long course
Notes
Men short course
Women long course
Women short course
Notes
All-time top 25 Tables show data for two definitions of "Top 25" - the top 25 200 m breaststroke times and the top 25 athletes:- denotes top performance for athletes in the top 25 200 m breaststroke times- denotes lesser performances, still in the top 25 200 m breaststroke times, by repeat athletes- denotes top performance (only) for other top 25 athletes who fall outside the top 25 200 m breaststroke times
Men long course Correct as of September 2026 Time Athlete Nation Date Place 1 1 2:04.83 Shin Ohashi 24 September 2026 Tokyo 2 2 2:05.48 Qin Haiyang 28 July 2023 Fukuoka 3 3 2:05.85 Léon Marchand 31 July 2024 Paris 4 4 2:05.95 Zac Stubblety-Cook 19 May 2022 Adelaide 5 5 2:06.12 Anton Chupkov 26 July 2019 Gwangju 6 2:06.28Stubblety-Cook #2 15 June 2021 Adelaide 7 2:06.38Stubblety-Cook #3 29 July 2021 Tokyo 6 8 2:06.40 Shoma Sato 7 April 2021 Tokyo 8 2:06.40Stubblety-Cook #4 28 July 2023 Fukuoka 7 10 2:06.54 Matthew Fallon 19 June 2024 Indianapolis 11 2:06.59Marchand #2 11 June 2023 Rennes Ohashi #2 21 March 2026 Tokyo 8 13 2:06.67 Ippei Watanabe 29 January 2017 Tokyo Matthew Wilson 25 July 2019 Gwangju 15 2:06.68Wilson #2 26 July 2019 Gwangju 16 2:06.72Stubblety-Cook #5 22 June 2022 Budapest 17 2:06.73Watanabe #2 26 July 2019 Gwangju 18 2:06.74Sato #2 7 February 2021 Tokyo 19 2:06.78Sato #3 24 January 2021 Tokyo 20 2:06.79Stubblety-Cook #6 31 July 2024 Paris 21 2:06.80Chupkov #2 6 August 2018 Glasgow 22 2:06.83Chupkov #3 25 July 2019 Gwangju 10 23 2:06.85 Arno Kamminga 4 December 2020 Rotterdam 24 2:06.91Ohashi #3 21 July 2025 Kusatsu 25 2:06.94Watanabe #3 21 March 2024 Tokyo 11 2:07.01 Akihiro Yamaguchi 15 September 2012 Gifu 12 2:07.07 Yamato Fukasawa 17 February 2024 Chiba Yu Hanaguruma 21 March 2024 Tokyo 14 2:07.13 Matti Mattsson 29 July 2021 Tokyo 15 2:07.17 Josh Prenot 30 June 2016 Omaha 16 2:07.18 Yasuhiro Koseki 16 April 2017 Nagoya 17 2:07.23 Dániel Gyurta 2 August 2013 Barcelona 18 2:07.25 Kirill Prigoda 21 July 2022 Kazan 19 2:07.30 Ross Murdoch 24 July 2014 Glasgow 20 2:07.31 Christian Sprenger 30 July 2009 Rome 21 2:07.32 Filip Nowacki 22 August 2025 Otopeni 22 2:07.41 Kevin Cordes 28 June 2017 Indianapolis 23 2:07.42 Eric Shanteau 30 July 2009 Rome 24 2:07.43 Michael Jamieson 1 August 2012 London 25 2:07.46 Dmitriy Balandin 10 August 2016 Rio de Janeiro
Men short course Correct as of October 2026 Time Athlete Nation Date Place 1 1 1:59.52 Caspar Corbeau 25 October 2025 Toronto 2 2 2:00.16 Kirill Prigoda 13 December 2018 Hangzhou 3 3 2:00.35 Daiya Seto 16 December 2022 Melbourne 4 4 2:00.44 Marco Koch 20 November 2016 Berlin 5 5 2:00.48 Dániel Gyurta 31 August 2014 Dubai 6 2:00.53Koch #2 3 December 2015 Netanya 7 2:00.58Koch #3 1 November 2020 Budapest 8 2:00.67Gyurta #2 13 December 2009 Istanbul 9 2:00.72Gyurta #3 15 December 2013 Herning 10 2:00.81Koch #4 26 October 2020 Budapest 6 11 2:00.86 Carles Coll 5 December 2025 Lublin 12 2:01.06Gyurta #4 27 August 2014 Doha 13 2:01.11Prigoda #2 14 December 2017 Copenhagen 7 14 2:01.15 Qin Haiyang 13 December 2018 Hangzhou 15 2:01.18Prigoda #3 19 November 2017 Singapore 16 2:01.20Prigoda #4 14 November 2020 Budapest 17 2:01.21Koch #5 8 December 2016 Windsor 18 2:01.24Prigoda #5 4 October 2017 Doha 8 18 2:01.24 Shin Ohashi 29 March 2026 Chiba 20 2:01.27Corbeau #2 5 December 2025 Lublin 21 2:01.28Koch #6 31 August 2014 Dubai 22 2:01.30Gyurta #5 9 November 2013 Tokyo Seto #2 19 November 2017 Singapore Prigoda #6 11 November 2018 Tokyo 25 2:01.31Koch #7 14 November 2020 Budapest 9 2:01.43 Michael Jamieson 15 December 2013 Herning Arno Kamminga 17 December 2020 Amsterdam 11 2:01.57 Anton Chupkov 11 November 2018 Tokyo 12 2:01.60 Nic Fink 16 December 2022 Melbourne 13 2:01.65 Anton McKee 1 November 2020 Budapest 14 2:01.67 Joshua Yong 20 October 2024 Shanghai 15 2:01.70 Ippei Watanabe 23 October 2022 Tokyo 16 2:01.73 Ilya Shymanovich 6 November 2021 Kazan Luke Barr 3 October 2026 Baku 18 2:01.78 Yasuhiro Koseki 27 October 2019 Tokyo 19 2:01.85 Mikhail Dorinov 14 December 2017 Copenhagen 20 2:01.91 Aleksandr Zhigalov 23 November 2024 Saint Petersburg 21 2:01.98 Christian Sprenger 10 August 2009 Hobart 22 2:02.00 Léon Marchand 12 October 2025 Carmel 23 2:02.01 Yamato Fukasawa 13 December 2024 Budapest 24 2:02.18 Erik Persson 6 November 2021 Kazan 25 2:02.27 Will Licon 21 November 2020 Budapest
Women long course
Correct as of August 2026 Time Athlete Nation Date Place 1 1 2:17.55 Evgeniia Chikunova 21 April 2023 Kazan 2 2 2:18.50 Kate Douglass 1 August 2025 Singapore 3 3 2:18.95 Tatjana Smith 30 July 2021 Tokyo 4 2:18.98Chikunova #2 27 July 2024 Yekaterinburg 5 2:19.01Smith #2 10 April 2024 Gqeberha 4 6 2:19.11 Rikke Møller Pedersen 1 August 2013 Barcelona 7 2:19.16Smith #3 28 July 2021 Tokyo 8 2:19.24Douglass #2 1 August 2024 Paris 9 2:19.30Douglass #3 13 January 2024 Knoxville 10 2:19.32 Chikunova #3 14 August 2026 Paris 11 2:19.33Smith #4 29 July 2021 Tokyo 5 12 2:19.41 Yuliya Yefimova 2 August 2013 Barcelona 13 2:19.46Douglass #4 20 June 2024 Indianapolis 6 14 2:19.59 Rebecca Soni 2 August 2012 London 15 2:19.60Smith #5 1 August 2024 Paris 16 2:19.61Møller Pedersen #2 13 April 2014 Eindhoven 7 17 2:19.64 Viktoria Zeynep Gunes 30 August 2015 Singapore 17 2:19.64Yefimova #2 28 July 2017 Budapest 8 19 2:19.65 Rie Kaneto 9 April 2016 Tokyo 20 2:19.66Douglass #5 19 June 2024 Indianapolis 21 2:19.67Møller Pedersen #3 12 June 2014 Canet-en-Roussillon 9 22 2:19.70 Angharad Evans 16 April 2026 London 23 2:19.71Chikunova #4 30 July 2023 Kazan 24 2:19.74Chikunova #5 19 April 2024 Kazan Douglass #6 31 July 2024 Paris 10 2:19.81 Tes Schouten 16 February 2024 Doha 11 2:19.92 Lilly King 30 July 2021 Tokyo 12 2:20.12 Annamay Pierse 30 July 2009 Rome 13 2:20.54 Leisel Jones 1 February 2006 Melbourne 14 2:20.72 Satomi Suzuki 2 August 2012 London 15 2:20.77 Annie Lazor 19 May 2019 Bloomington 16 2:20.89 Molly Renshaw 15 April 2021 London 17 2:20.90 Kanako Watanabe 12 April 2015 Tokyo 18 2:21.37 Qi Hui 17 October 2009 Jinan 19 2:21.45 Taylor McKeown 11 April 2016 Adelaide 20 2:21.62 Nađa Higl 31 July 2009 Rome 21 2:21.69 Abbie Wood 15 April 2021 London 22 2:21.74 Micah Sumrall 1 August 2013 Barcelona 23 2:21.73 Alexanne Lepage 14 August 2026 Irvine 24 2:21.77 Bethany Galat 28 July 2017 Budapest 25 2:21.85 Reona Aoki 8 April 2018 Tokyo
Women short course
Correct as of October 2025 Time Athlete Nation Date Place 1 1 2:12.50 Kate Douglass 13 December 2024 Budapest 2 2:12.72Douglass #2 31 October 2024 Singapore 3 2:13.45Douglass #3 23 October 2025 Toronto 4 2:13.97Douglass #4 10 October 2025 Carmel 5 2:14.16Douglass #5 24 October 2024 Incheon 2 6 2:14.39 Yulia Yefimova 13 December 2013 Herning 3 7 2:14.57 Rebecca Soni 18 December 2009 Manchester 7 2:14.57Douglass #6 17 October 2025 Westmont 4 9 2:14.70 Evgeniia Chikunova 25 November 2022 Kazan 10 2:15.14Chikunova #2 13 December 2024 Budapest 5 11 2:15.21 Rikke Møller Pedersen 13 December 2013 Herning 6 12 2:15.42 Leisel Jones 15 November 2009 Berlin 7 13 2:15.56 Lilly King 21 November 2020 Budapest 14 2:15.62Yefimova #2 28 September 2018 Eindhoven 15 2:15.74Douglass #7 23 October 2025 Toronto 8 16 2:15.76 Rie Kaneto 9 October 2016 Doha 17 2:15.77Douglass #8 16 December 2022 Melbourne 18 2:15.80King #2 5 November 2020 Budapest 19 2:15.91Kaneto #2 1 October 2016 Beijing 20 2:15.93Møller Pedersen #2 11 August 2013 Berlin 21 2:15.96Douglass #9 18 October 2024 Shanghai 22 2:15.99Douglass #10 10 October 2025 Carmel 23 2:16.04King #3 26 October 2020 Budapest 24 2:16.05Yefimova #3 15 November 2018 Singapore 25 2:16.08Møller Pedersen #3 16 December 2012 Istanbul 9 2:16.09 Tes Schouten 8 December 2023 Otopeni 10 2:16.33 Annie Lazor 21 November 2020 Budapest 11 2:16.51 Emily Escobedo 5 November 2020 Budapest 12 2:16.83 Alex Walsh 13 December 2024 Budapest Annamay Pierse 7 August 2009 Leeds 14 2:16.92 Kanako Watanabe 7 December 2014 Doha 15 2:16.93 Laura Sogar 16 December 2012 Istanbul 16 2:17.00 Kelsey Wog 25 November 2023 Winnipeg 17 2:17.10 Jocelyn Ulyett 6 December 2019 Sheffield 18 2:17.25 Mio Motegi 16 February 2014 Tokyo 19 2:17.30 Alina Zmushka 13 December 2024 Budapest 20 2:17.50 Katy Freeman 18 December 2009 Manchester 21 2:17.52 Nađa Higl 11 December 2009 Istanbul 22 2:17.75 Sydney Pickrem 21 November 2020 Budapest 23 2:17.80 Molly Renshaw 14 November 2020 Budapest Anna Elendt 10 October 2025 Carmel 25 2:17.84 Alia Atkinson 2 November 2014 Singapore
Olympic champions Men
Edition Winner Time Notes London 1908 3:09.2 Stockholm 1912 3:01.8 Antwerp 1920 3:04.4 Paris 1924 2:56.6 Amsterdam 1928 2:48.8 Los Angeles 1932 2:45.4 Berlin 1936 2:41.5 London 1948 2:39.3 Helsinki 1952 2:34.4 Melbourne 1956 2:34.7 Rome 1960 2:37.4 Tokyo 1964 2:27.8 Mexico City 1968 2:28.7 Munich 1972 2:21.55 Montreal 1976 2:15.11 Moscow 1980 2:15.85 Los Angeles 1984 2:13.34 Seoul 1988 2:13.52 Barcelona 1992 2:10.16 Atlanta 1996 2:12.57 Sydney 2000 2:10.87 Athens 2004 2:09.44 Beijing 2008 2:07.64 London 2012 2:07.28 Rio de Janeiro 2016 2:07.46 Tokyo 2020 2:06.38 Paris 2024 2:05.85
Women
Edition Winner Time Notes Paris 1924 3:33.2 Amsterdam 1928 3:12.6 Los Angeles 1932 3:06.3 Berlin 1936 3:01.9 London 1948 2:57.2 Helsinki 1952 2:51.7 Melbourne 1956 2:53.1 Rome 1960 2:49.5 Tokyo 1964 2:46.4 Mexico City 1968 2:44.4 Munich 1972 2:41.71 Montreal 1976 2:33.35 Moscow 1980 2:29.54 Los Angeles 1984 2:30.38 Seoul 1988 2:26.71 Barcelona 1992 2:26.65 Atlanta 1996 2:25.41 Sydney 2000 2:24.35 Athens 2004 2:23.37 Beijing 2008 2:20.22 London 2012 2:19.59 Rio de Janeiro 2016 2:20.30 Tokyo 2020 2:18.95 Paris 2024 2:19.24
World champions (long course) Men
Edition Winner Time Notes Belgrade 1973 2:19.28 Cali 1975 2:18.23 CR West Berlin 1978 2:16.37 CR Guayaquil 1982 2:14.77 CR Madrid 1986 2:14.27 CR Perth 1991 2:11.23 Rome 1994 2:12.81 Perth 1998 2:13.40 Fukuoka 2001 2:10.69 CR Barcelona 2003 2:09.42 Montreal 2005 2:09.85 Melbourne 2007 2:09.80 Rome 2009 2:07.64 Shanghai 2011 2:08.41 Barcelona 2013 2:07.23 CR Kazan 2015 2:07.76 Budapest 2017 2:06.96 CR Gwangju 2019 2:06.12 Budapest 2022 2:07.07 Fukuoka 2023 2:05.48 Doha 2024 2:07.94 Singapore 2025 2:07.41
Women
Edition Winner Time Notes Belgrade 1973 2:40.01 CR Cali 1975 2:37.25 CR West Berlin 1978 2:31.42 Guayaquil 1982 2:28.82 CR Madrid 1986 2:27.40 Perth 1991 2:29.53 Rome 1994 2:26.87 CR Perth 1998 2:25.45 CR Fukuoka 2001 2:24.90 CR Barcelona 2003 2:22.99 = Montreal 2005 2:21.72 Melbourne 2007 2:21.84 Rome 2009 2:21.62 Shanghai 2011 2:21.47 Barcelona 2013 2:19.41 Kazan 2015 2:21.15 Budapest 2017 2:19.64 Gwangju 2019 2:20.17 Budapest 2022 2:22.41 Fukuoka 2023 2:20.80 Doha 2024 2:19.81 Singapore 2025 2:18.50 CR
World champions (short course) Men