FINA World Championships Budapest 2022, as it happened: Day three - Thomas Ceccon breaks 100m back world record

Thomas Ceccon's stunning men's 100m backstroke world record highlighted day three of swimming finals at the 19th FINA World Championship Budapest 2022 in Hungary.

It was a successful night for Italy, with 17-year-old Benedetta Pilato also clinching the women's 100m breaststroke title.

Meanwhile, Katie Ledecky won her 17th world title, putting her just one behind Ryan Lochte for second on the all-time list (Michael Phelps, unsurprisingly, is first), while Regan Smith and David Popovici were the other victors on the day.

Check out the full results from the day's five swimming finals.

Earlier in artistic swimming, Italy's Giorgio Minisini and Lucrezia Ruggiero won the mixed duet technical final while Ukraine triumphed in the women's team free combination.

Olympics.com carried live updates the entire day from Budapest, which you can re-live as they happened below.

All times Central European Time (UTC/GMT +2 hours). Most recent updates first.

8:55pm - Pilato on her win

We'll end tonight's live updates with reaction from the new world champ in the women's 100m breaststroke, Benedetta Pilato.

"It's really a surprise, I'm obviously happy. Really, I didn't expect it, but before I swum I saw the lap from Thomas (Ceccon), and I was crying for him. I was there with tears and I didn't know what to do, I thought 'God, I have the race!' and then I left! I ran to the Call Room.

"Yesterday I was very calm, today a little less there was a lot more pressure, it was my first world final in a 100 breaststroke and it was already a goal for me to be in the final!
"Being in this team is beautiful, one emotion after another, starting with Tete [Martinenghi] yesterday ... we are a strong, united group."

We're back tomorrow from 8:30am when we'll also catch you up on tonight's water polo scores with the preliminaries beginning in that competition.

Until then, thanks for joining us.

7:56pm - MEDAL MOMENT - Italy celebrate second gold of night

Time for the evening's last final, the women's 100m breaststroke.

Lane 8 sees world record holder Lilly King of USA; in lane 1, Molly Renshaw of Great Britain; in lane 7, Sophie Hansson of Sweden; in lane 2, Aoki Reona of Japan; in lane 6, Ruta Meilutyte, the 2012 Olympic champion from Lithuania; in lane 3, Tang Qianting of China; in lane 5, Benedetta Pilato of Italy; and in lane 4 is Germany's Anna Elendt.

King – the surprise slowest finalist who only made it through after her teammate Annie Lazor was DQd in the semis – is lagging behind at 50. It's Tang of China ahead at the turn.

Meilutyte has edged in front now, this could be a surprise.

And it's Pilato who just edges Elendt out with Meilutyte taking bronze!

1:05.93 the winning time and Pilato is emotional in the pool. She can't believe it. King pushed hard to finish just off the podium in fourth.

"I'm sorry, I'm super happy. It's my dream and it's come true tonight," the 17-year-old says as she breaks down in her post-race interview.

7:52pm - Milak sends home crowd wild

The men's 200m breaststroke semis have been taking place and Kristof Milak has sent the Hungarian crowd wild.

Milak is the fastest across the two heats and will be the top seed in tomorrow's final, where he'll be joined by Honda Tomoru, Noe Ponti, Leon Marchand, Luca Urlando, Tamas Kenderesi, Alberto Razzetti, and James Guy.

7:43pm - Ledecky reacts to 17th world title

Katie Ledecky has stopped to speak to Olympics.com in the mixed zone. Here's a selection:

On what it takes to be so consistent at such a high level:

"It takes a lot of work. It's about taking care of myself, doing all the right things in and out of the pool to have that longevity. you can't get complacent. You've just got to put in the work, even in recovery and all those types of things, especially as you get older."

On her role models:

"There's countless. It's been great to see that swimmers are now sticking around longer and having longer careers especially on the female side. Given Title IX over the past 50 years and the improvements in professional sports, it's allowed women to compete for longer and so I'm happy that I've had the career that I've had and I recognise that a lot of great female swimmers had to retire at a younger age because there weren't the opportunities that I benefit from."

On Chile's Kristel Kobrich, the 36-year-old who finished eighth in the 1500 final:

"She's incredible. I'm not going to be able to do this when I'm 36, so I told her after the race that she's incredible to make a final at Worlds at that age and gives all of us a little perspective that distance swimmers can go long and have really stellar careers like that."

7:30pm - Oleksiak DQd in 200m free

We've just had the women's 200m free semis and the big news is that Canada's Penny Oleksiak – who would be a race favourite – was disqualified in the first heat.

We'll have to wait to see if the Canadians choose to protest that.

The final eight are Freya Anderson, Madison Wilson, Mollie O'Callaghan, Charlotte Bonnet, Yang Junxuan, Taylor Ruck, Isabel Gose, and Tang Muhan.

7:05pm - MEDAL MOMENT - WORLD RECORD - Thomas Ceccon wins 100m back in record time

Straight on to the other 100m backstroke final, this one for the men.

Romania's Robert Glinta is in lane 8; in lane 1, Irie Ryosuke of Japan; in lane 7, world record holder Ryan Murphy of USA; in lane 2, Yohann Ndoye-Brouard of France; in lane 6, Ksawery Masiuk of Poland; in lane 3, Hunter Armstrong of USA; in lane 5, Thomas Ceccon of Italy; and in lane 4, the new championship record holder, Apostolos Christou of Greece.

The world record is 51.85 belonging to Murphy. Christou's 52.09 from semis is the Championship record.

Murphy is fastest to react to the start buzzer and is in the lead in lane 7 at 50m, under the world record split.

The American is just ahead of Ceccon with around 25m to go, and the Italian may have just edged in front. This could be a world record, it is!

Thomas Ceccon breaks the world record to win gold! 51.60.

Ryan Murphy takes silver, Hunter Armstrong wins bronze.

"I have no words for this, I'm pretty happy for this, and I don't know. No words," Ceccon offers in his interview. "There is an Olympic champion from 2016 (Murphy), so no," he says when asked if he expected the win.

Speaking in Italian in the mixed zone after, Ceccon said:

"I already did well yesterday afternoon. I didn't say it out of luck, but I could easily swim 51.8. This morning I rested, I was very calm, I had to do the same race as yesterday, keeping the (same) last 15.

"For the world record it is something that only four or five athletes in Italy have managed to do, so it is not a simple thing, it is a nice step that I have taken."

6:58pm - Smith ends Masse's hold on backstroke title

The women's 100m backstroke final is up next.

In lane 8, Emma Terebo of France; in lane 1, Peng Xuwei of China; in lane 7, Wan Letian of China; in lane 2, Medi Harris of Great Britain; in lane 6, Kira Toussaint of Netherlands; in lane 3, Claire Curzan of USA; in lane 5, Kylie Masse of Canada; and in lane 4, Regan Smith of USA, the Championship record holder from three years ago.

The world record is 57.45, belonging to Kaylee McKeown. Masse is the two-time defending champion.

Masse is the fastest away after the buzzer, and the Canadian is just ahead heading into the turn but Smith turns in the lead!

The American Smith turns it on now but Masse and Curzan are right on her tail and Masse might be pushing ahead. Smith just out-touches Masse.

Gold for Smith, silver for Masse, bronze for Curzan – 58.22 the winning time.

"It was a great race, I have a full circle moment going from world junior champion to world champion in the 100 back for Team USA. I'm really happy I was able to get my hand to the wall but I really think I had a lot more in me in that race," Smith says in her arena interview.

Speaking to Olympics.com later in the mixed zone, Smith said the world record was in her sights.

"It's definitely a big focus for me. I always have it in the back of my mind and I was really pleased with my swim last night being super close it and really close to my best time, that's really important to me because I haven't gone a best time in three years now so I'm really itching to do that. So I'm a little bit bummed with my swim tonight. But tonight's about place, it's not about time so I'm really pleased with my time overall."

6:45pm - Qualifiers for men's 50m breaststroke final

We've had the 50m breaststroke semis this evening, another event in which we will get a first-time world champion after the withdrawal of Adam Peaty through injury.

The 100m world champ, Nicolo Martinenghi, is the top seed for the final. He's joined by Michael Andrew, Nic Fink, Lucas Mazerath, Simone Cerasuolo, Yan Zibei, Bernhard Reitshammer, and Felipe Silva.

A short break in the action now as the legend Ian Thorpe presents the 200m free medals.

6:40pm - Reaction from Popovici and Dean after 200m free

Here's the new world champion David Popovici of Romania after his triumph in the 200m free.

The 17-year-old said to Olympics.com in the mixed zone: "My goal was to go as fast as I can. It was a tactical race, a well-thought-out race, and we just had confidence, our team we had confidence, a lot of it.

"The most fun is during the race because on the last lap I was saying to myself, 'This is the biggest moment of my life thus far', and I want to make it memorable for me and everyone else."

He also says he will swim at the European Championships this summer – both junior and senior – as well as the World Junior Championships.

Meanwhile, bronze medallist Tom Dean, the Olympic champion, was left rueing his tactics.

"I took a gamble, went out quick and paid the price at the end. I felt every single metre of that final 25. The atmosphere, the occasion, that's what carried me out. But you can't go out on world record pace and not expect to die on the back end. It's a learning experience, I thought I had them all behind me now but I'm 22 years old and I'm still learning.

"You got to give it to (Popovici), there's nothing you can do about that. 1:43.2, I didn't think I'd see that for years to come. The impossible seems impossible until it's done and the youngsters are doing just that."

6:30pm - MEDAL MOMENT - Ledecky eases to 1500m gold

Grimes is back neck-and-neck with Pallister at 1100m. That race for silver is definitely the one to watch as Ledecky has the world title in the bag again.

Ledecky is at 12:24.20 at 1200m. Six lengths to go. Meanwhile Grimes has half a body length on Pallister at that turn.

At 1500m Grimes is now a decent distance – around two body lengths – clear of Pallister. The swimmers take the bell for the last 1000m.

Ledecky, completely unchallenged, eases to victory in 15:30.15.

It's an American one-two as Grimes takes silver. Pallister clinches bronze.

This is Ledecky's 17th World Championships gold medal. Just one behind Ryan Lochte now and not far behind Michael Phelps.

Ledecky shares high-fives with her teammate in the lane over.

"It's awesome, we did it last year (at Tokyo) and we're going to make it a tradition," Ledecky says of the Team USA one-two.

6:25pm - Ledecky on course at 1000m

For comparison, Ledecky's championship record, set in Kazan in 2015, is 15:25.48 – five seconds behind her world record.

At 700m, Ledecky is around half a second outside her world mark but a cool four body lengths clear of the field. The gap is over seven seconds.

The American is well clear of the field but at 900m the action is between Pallister and Grimes, with Pallister now in second.

Ledecky is splitting around 31.1 every length, which is an astounding pace.

6:20pm - Ledecky comfortably clear

Ledecky doesn't get the fastest start off the blocks but eases into the lead about halfway down the first length of the pool.

She then proceeds to pull away from the rest of the field, with Grimes and Pallister the closest to her.

At 400m, Ledecky is about two-and-a-half body lengths ahead of Grimes and still under her own world record split.

The gap is around four seconds at 500m.

6:14pm - Women's 1500m free underway

The longest pool race on the schedule is up next with the women's 1500m freestyle final.

Katie Ledecky, the world record holder (15:20.48), is the clear favourite.

In lane 8, Kristel Kobrich of Chile, who's in her 10th World Championships; in lane 1, Viviane Jungblut of Brazil; in lane 7, Beatriz Dizotti of Brazil; in lane 2, Moesha Johnson of Australia; in lane 6, Lani Pallister of Australia; in lane 3, Katie Grimes of USA; in lane 5, Simona Quadarella of Italy; and Ledecky completes the field in lane 4.

6:08pm - MEDAL MOMENT - Popovici lowers world junior record to win 200 free

Tonight's first swimming final is the men's 200m freestyle final.

The world record is 1:42.00 by Paul Biedermann, dating back to the 2009 World Championships.

In lane 8 is Kieran Smith of USA; in lane 1, Lukas Martens of Germany; in lane 7, USA's Drew Kibler; in lane 2, Elijah Winnington of Australia; in lane 6, Olympic champion Tom Dean of Great Britain; in lane 3, Hwang Sunwoo of Korea; in lane 5, Felix Auboeck of Austria; and in lane 4, Romania's David Popovici, who broke the world junior record in the semi-finals last night. That record, 1:44.40, could fall again today.

Hwang has the fastest reaction time off the blocks. The Korean is the former world junior record holder. Dean turns in the lead at 50m, ahead of the world record split.

The Olympic champ remains ahead at the halfway point, still inside the record split. Popovici is now pushing ahead on the third length of four, and turns in the lead by more than a second.

They're coming back for the final length and Popovici is a full body length ahead! He has smashed this race apart and wins in 1:43.21, another world junior record!

Popovici wins gold, Hwang wins silver, Dean takes bronze.

"Absolutely tired! It was great. The pool is very fast and I think what pushed me the most, going this fast, the fact I know people I love are watching and that people at home believe in me," Popovici says in his post-race arena interview. "I'm going to focus on recovery because the job's not done. I still have the 100."

5:10pm - MEDAL MOMENT - Ukraine win gold

Greece can't quite crack the top three with the final routine, which means Ukraine have won gold.

Japan take silver and Italy bronze.

That concludes today's artistic swimming action. However, swimming finals begin in just 50 minutes.

4:55pm - Ukraine break 95-point mark

Ukraine have vaulted into the lead of this free combination final.

A massive 95.0333 score is 1.1 points higher than their qualifying mark and a full three points ahead of Italy.

Japan and Greece left to swim.

4:35pm - Italy make big improvement

Wow. Italy, who were third in qualification with a 90.9667, have obtained a huge jump in the final.

92.0333 puts them in first after five teams.

Ukraine and Japan out-scored them in the preliminary round.

3:55pm - Teams being introduced

A nice cheer for the hosts Hungary as the 10 finalist teams for the women's team free combination final are introduced.

There were only 10 entries in the event, so all of them have made the final.

Ukraine were the top qualifiers on 93.9333 and are the team to beat.

3:04pm - MEDAL MOMENT - Italy back on top

After winning silver in this event three years ago in Gwangju, Italy are back on the top step of the podium.

Minisini and Ruggiero's 89.2685 proves unbeatable on the day.

Japan's Sato Yotaro / Sato Tomoka win silver, while China's Shi Haoyu / Zhang Yiyao win bronze.

2:36pm - Italians into the lead

Time for the favourites in the mixed duet technical, and top qualifiers, Giorgio Minisini / Lucrezia Ruggiero of Italy.

It's a fantastic routine that gets two thumbs up from both Italian coaches.

Minisini won this event the last time the Worlds were in Budapest in 2017, while it's Ruggiero's first worlds. It's 89.2685, a jump of 0.7 points on their preliminary score.

That will take some beating.

1:45pm - Inui leads the way

The women's solo free preliminary took place this morning and after 28 routines, it was Japan's Inui Yukiko, the world champion in the solo technical, dominated proceedings today, scoring 94.5667 to top the qualifiers.

At 2pm, the mixed duet technical final will begin, before the women's team free combination final at 4pm.

12:15 pm - It's World Refugee Day

June 20 is World Refugee Day, which honours approximately 100 million displaced people around the world.

We spoke to Tokyo 2020 Olympic swimmer and IOC Refugee Team member Alaa Maso, who fled war-torn Syria in 2015 to start a new life in Germany and has not seen his parents since.

However, the 22-year-old triumphed in the face of significant adversity and continues to be a beacon of hope and positivity.

"My message is to always work with patience and to always wait for your moment because if you trust your progress, you will rise one day," he told Olympics.com.

Check out the full interview below, where he also reveals why USA's triple Olympic champion swimmer Anthony Ervin is his sporting hero.

11:23 am - Can anyone catch Katie Ledecky?

She's the reigning Olympic and world champion in the 1500m freestyle, and it would take a seismic upset to beat her in this evening's final.

The question is, can the USA star beat her own world record of 15:25.48?

Here is a reminder of what is happening in the Duna Arena this evening:

• Men's 200m freestyle final
• Women's 1500m freestyle final
• Men's 50m breaststroke semi-finals
• Women's 100m backstroke final
• Men's 100m backstroke final
• Women's 200m freestyle semi-finals
• Men's 200m butterfly semi-finals
• Women's 100m breaststroke final

10:45 am - Get ready for 'a juicy final' in the men's 800m freestyle

Italy's Gregorio Paltrinieri edged a neck-and-neck race with Bobby Finke to win the men's 800m freestyle heats.

The Italian finished in 7:46.24, but the American Olympic champion looked like he was conserving energy before tomorrow's final.

A fierce Heat 3 saw training partners Mykhailo Romanchuk and Florian Wellbrock battling the whole way for first place, with the Ukrainian 800 free Olympic bronze medallist taking it in 7:44.75.

Germany's 10km open water swimming Olympic champion and 1500 freestyle bronze medallist Wellbrock finished second just +0.5 off the pace.

Italian Gabriele Detti, Ireland's Daniel Wiffen, and Guilherme Costa of Brazil will also progress to the medal race.

In the word's of the Australian commentators next to us, this is going to be 'a juicy final' tomorrow with so much depth on show.

That point is demonstrated perfectly by the fact that the fastest swimmer in the world this year Lukas Martens finished seventh and will not progresses.

Australia's recently-crowned 400m free world champion Elijah Winnington did not start in order to conserve energy for his 200 free final tonight.

10:22 am - Hungary excited for water polo

Did you know that water polo is Hungary's national sport? They won bronze in the men's and women's tournaments at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in 2021.

The country has big stadiums dedicated to what some describe as the world's most physically-demanding sport, meaning there will be some electric crowds here at the 2022 World Championships.

The hosts take on Colombia this evening in the women's group matches, while Olympic champions USA take on South Africa.

10:00 am - Milak win gets the Budapest crowd going

All eyes are on Hungary's favourite son at these world championships, and Kristof Milak didn't disappoint in the men's 200m butterfly heats.

The Olympic champion, reigning world champion, and world record holder will be seeded No. 1 for this evening's semis after coming from behind in the final 50m to finish in 1:54.10. He looked like he had plenty more to give.

Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Honda Tomoru was out-touched by Switzerland's Noe Ponti in their thrilling heat and will progress as the second and third fastest finishers overall.

They will be joined by France's 400 medley world champion Leon Marchand, British Olympic gold medallist James Guy and USA's Julian Trenton, who was ahead of Milak for most of that stacked final heat.

South African veteran Chad le Clos did not start the race.

9:35am - Yang, Wilson, Oleksiak safely through in women's 200 free

China's Yang Junxuan rocketed down the final straight to secure the top time in women's 200m freestyle qualifying with 1:56.58.

FINA 2021 World Cup breakout star Madison Wilson of Australia finished second to Yang in the heat, and second overall, with Canada's Rio 2016 Olympic gold medallist Penny Oleksiak barely getting out of second gear to go third.

USA's Leah Smith, GB's Freya Anderson, Oleksiak's compatriot Taylor Ruck and 15-year-old American Claire Weinstein will also take teir place in this evening's semi-finals, with the top-16 finishers all progressing.

Unfortunately, Hong Kong's double freestyle Olympic silver medallist Siobhan Haughey pulled out of the heats this morning after failing to recover from an injury sustained at a pre-Worlds training camp.

With Katie Ledecky choosing not to swim this event in Budapest despite winning the USA Trials, it is time for a new world champion in the women's 200 freestyle.

9:20 am - Nicolo Martinenghi cruises into men's 50 breaststroke semis

Newly-crowned men's 100m breaststroke champion Nicolo Martinenghi looked like he was buzzing with confidence as he sealed the top overall time in men's 50 breaststroke qualifying with 26.68.

Second place overall went to Heat 6 winner Michael Andrew, who looked sharp off the blocks and easy in the water as he secured the 26.71, as Brazil's Joao Gomes Junior took third. Andrew was one of the star's of new Olympics.com series Splash In, and you can watch his episode here.

Short course world champion Nic Fink of the USA put on an underwater masterclass to take Heat 5 in 26.85, and progresses into this evening's semi-finals.

Interestingly there were eight video reviews that led to disqualifications, with some competitors using dolphin kicks (with feet facing down) instead of a traditional kick with the feet facing outwards.

9:00am - News flash: Siobhan Haughey out

The double women's freestyle Olympic silver medallist at Tokyo 2020 Siobhan Haughey has pulled out of this morning's 200m freestyle prelims after failing to recover from an injury sustained at a pre-Worlds training camp.

The Hong Kong star was considered one of the favourites for gold. Get better soon Siobhan!

8:55 am - USA leading the way

The USA swimmers are leading the way so far in Budapest with five gold medals, and 12 overall.

The warm-ups are finished here at the Duna Arena and it's time for action.

The men's 50m breaststroke prelims begin in five minutes!

8:46 am - Michael Andrew making a splash

Another athlete to watch in the men's 50m breaststroke heats this morning is USA's Michael Andrew.

Still only 23 years old, it feels like he has been around forever. Perhaps that's because he turned professional aged 14!

Yesterday, the versatile sprinter won bronze in the men's 50m butterfly final. In the absence of injured Adam Peaty, he will be one of the favourites to land 50 breaststroke gold alongside freshly-crowned 100m champion Nicolo Martinenghi.

Andrew helped USA break the 4x100m medley relay record en route to gold at Tokyo 2020, and starred in the new Olympic Channel series Splash In. Check out his episode below, where we delve into his record-breaking feats.

8:30 am - Today's programme

Good morning and welcome back to today's FINA World Championships 2022 live blog!

It's another beautiful, hot day on the Danube - the perfect setting for the host nation's favourite son Kristof Milak to swim his signature event the men's 200m butterfly.

The 22-year-old broke the world record in the event shortly before winning Olympic gold at Tokyo 2020, so expect a party atmosphere in the stands in Budapest today.

There will be five medal events this evening, with Katie Ledecky the strong favourite to seal another women's 1500m freestyle title.

Elsewhere, Regan Smith, Kylie Masse and Claire Curzan will lock horns in the ultra-competitive women's 100m backstroke, while Hunter Armstrong will be looking to break the men's 100m backstroke world record.

The men's 200m freestyle is simply too close to call, with 400 world champion Elijah Winnington looking to win his second title of the event, and Romania's David Popovici setting a new junior world record in the semi-finals yesterday.

In water polo, women's Olympic champions the USA being their campaign this evening against South Africa, while the water polo-obsessed local crowd will see their team take on Colombia.

Here's today's swimming schedule:

Morning session – heats

• Men's 50m breaststroke
• Women's 200m freestyle
• Men's 200m butterfly
• Men's 800m freestyle

Evening session – semi-finals and finals

• Men's 200m freestyle final
• Women's 1500m freestyle final
• Men's 50m breaststroke semi-finals
• Women's 100m backstroke final
• Men's 100m backstroke final
• Women's 200m freestyle semi-finals
• Men's 200m butterfly semi-finals
• Women's 100m breaststroke final