Kiwi Erika Fairweather disqualified from 400m freestyle world title defence
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Erika Fairweather after winning her heat at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Photo / INPHO
Erika Fairweather's defence of her world 400m freestyle title was short-lived after the Kiwi swimmer was disqualified for a false start.
The 21-year-old finished fourth in the third heat at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore on Sunday, with a time of 4min 3.39sec - which would've seen her comfortably qualify in sixth for the final.
Instead, Fairweather was scratched after what the international broadcasters said was a move on the start.
Here's the Fairweather false start at the top of the screen in the blue suit. What do you think?
I think the call is technically correct. I don't know what the officials' guidelines are on what is too little to count, but there's definitely early movement there. pic.twitter.com/U4lp88Lswa — Braden Keith (@Braden_Keith) July 27, 2025
Nine-time Olympic gold medallist Katie Ledecky - the most decorated female swimmer in Olympic history - qualified first with a time of 4:01.04.
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Kiwi Erika Fairweather disqualified from 400m freestyle world title defence
Erika Fairweather after winning her heat at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Photo / INPHO Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech. Erika Fairweather after winning her heat at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Photo / INPHO Erika Fairweather's defence of her world 400m freestyle title was short-lived after the Kiwi swimmer was disqualified for a false start. The 21-year-old finished fourth in the third heat at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore on Sunday, with a time of 4min 3.39sec - which would've seen her comfortably qualify in sixth for the final. Instead, Fairweather was scratched after what the international broadcasters said was a move on the start. Here's the Fairweather false start at the top of the screen in the blue suit. What do you think? I think the call is technically correct. I don't know what the officials' guidelines are on what is too little to count, but there's definitely early movement there. — Braden Keith (@Braden_Keith) July 27, 2025 Nine-time Olympic gold medallist Katie Ledecky - the most decorated female swimmer in Olympic history - qualified first with a time of 4:01.04.
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Erika Fairweather narrowly missed bronze at the Paris Olympics. Photo: Photosport Reigning world champion Erica Fairweather has seen her 400m freestyle title defence derailed, when she was disqualified for breaking after her heat in Singapore. The Kiwi swimmer clocked 4m 03.39s, finishing fourth in the third heat, which would have seen her safely through to the final, but she had her performance scrubbed out for allegedly flinching on the starting block before the gun. Her time would have been the sixth fastest in qualifying. Disqualifications in swimming are rare. Fairweather, 21, captured the title at Doha last year in 3m 59.44s, as superstars Ariarne Titmus (Australia), Katie Ledecky (USA) and Summer McIntosh (Canada). She would later finish fourth behind that trio at the Paris Olympics, just 0.26s behind Ledecky for bronze. Ledecky and McIntosh will contest the title , but Olympic champion Titmus has bypassed the meet, while fifth-ranked American Claire Weinstein has also withdrawn from the event. Fairweather is also entered for the 200m freestyle, where she won silver last year, with heats scheduled for Tuesday. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
