In a dramatic conclusion to the Men's 50 Butterfly final at the World Aquatics Championships, Greece's Marios Stergios Bilas clinched the gold medal with a stunning time of 23.15 seconds. Bilas edged out Austria's Simon Bucher by just four-hundredths of a second, with Bucher finishing at 23.19 seconds.
Czech Republic's Daniel Gracik captured the bronze, improving significantly from his sixth-place prelim finish to touch the wall in 23.26 seconds. Pre-race favourite Meiron Amir Cheruti of Israel, despite a strong preliminary showing, ended up in fourth place with a time of 23.28 seconds.
The competition saw intense battles for all positions, including a tie for fifth place between Ukraine's Vladyslav Bukhov and Hungary's Szebasztian Szabo, both clocking in at 23.32 seconds. Romania's Denis-Laurean Popescu finished seventh with 23.43 seconds, and Croatia's Nikola Miljenic completed the field with a time of 23.71 seconds.
MEN’S 50 BUTTERFLY – FINAL
- World Record: 22.27 – Andrii Govorov, Ukraine (2018)
- European Record: 22.27 – Andrii Govorov, Ukraine (2018)
- Championship Record: 22.48 – Andrii Govorov, Ukraine (2018)
- Marios Stergios Bilas (GRE) – 23.15
- Simon Bucher (AUT) – 23.19
- Daniel Gracik (CZE) – 23.26
- Meiron Amir Cheruti (ISR) – 23.28
- Vladyslav Bukhov (UKR)/Szebasztian Szabo (HUN) – 23.32
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- Denis-Laurean Popescu (ROU) – 23.43
- Nikola Miljenic (CRO) – 23.71