2026 Commonwealth Games
MEN’S S14 200 Freestyle – Qualifiers
Top 8:
- Will Ellard (England) – 1:53.52 *Commonwealth Games record*
- Jack Ireland (Australia) – 1:56.33
- Rhys Darby (WAL) – 1:58.20
- Dylan Broome (VAL) – 1:59.83
- Ethan Yin Jun Hu (MAS) – 2:05.11
William Ellard, the world record holder in the men’s S14 200 freestyle, beat Nicholas Bennett’s Commonwealth Games record by almost a second and a half this morning.
Ellard was eliminated more than a second faster than Bennett, splitting 25.47/27.75 and clocking a 53.22 initial 100. He slowed down in the second 100, splitting 29.89/30.41 in 1:00.30 in the second half, touching 1:53.52 and cutting 1.45 seconds off the record.
His first 100m here was almost the same as when he swam 1:52.65 at the British Aquatics Championships in April, but almost a second faster than his best swim of the season.
As a guest swimmer, Ellard won the Dutch Trials in early June in 1:51.10, just 0.02 seconds off his world record of 1:51.08. There he opened the scoring with 54.09, splitting 28.21/28.80 in the second half of the race.
Split comparison
| Split | Best result of the season – Dutch Championship, 1:51.10 | Commonwealth Games Record – 2026 Commonwealth Games, 1:53.52. |
| 50 | 26.09 | 25.47 |
| 100 | 54.09 (28.00) | 53.22 (27.75) |
| 150 | 1:22.30 (28.21) | 1:23.11 (29.89) |
| 200 | 1:51.10 (28.80) | 1:53.52 (30.41) |
With some clear room for improvement in the latter half of today’s race, this may not be his only performance record of the day. Ellard will be favorite for gold tonight, having won Paralympic gold two years ago (1:51.30) and triumphed at the 2025 Paralympic World Championships (1:51.08), both of which set new world records.
Bennett set the previous mark of 1:54.97 at the 2022 Games when he won gold by half a second over Australian Benjamin Hance. Neither of the two were in the field this morning, but bronze medalist Jack Ireland returned to finish second behind Ellard in 1:56.33.