Sjostrom breaks women's 100 fly world record

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1 of 2. Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden competes in the women's 100m butterfly swimming semi-final at the World Championships in Rome July 26, 2009.

Credit: Reuters/Alessandro Bianchi

ROME | Sun Jul 26, 2009 12:44pm EDT

ROME (Reuters) - Sarah Sjostrom smashed the women's 100 meters butterfly world record in the semi-finals at the world championships on Sunday.

The 15-year-old Swede, who set a championship record in the heats, swam 56.44 seconds to beat Inge De Bruijn's 2000 Sydney Olympics mark of 56.61.

Sjostrom had been shocked by the pace in the heats earlier on Sunday when she surged through the water in 56.76 and easily beat that in the semis to look a firm favorite for Monday's final.

"The swim was incredible. I want to swim better because I know I swim better in the finals," she told reporters.

A string of world records are expected this week in Rome because of controversial hi-tech swimsuits, which are set to be banned for 2010.

(Reporting by Mark Meadows and Ian Simpson; Editing by Ed Osmond)
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