Teen swimmer Mizuki Hirai reached the final of the women's 100-meter butterfly at the Paris Olympics on Saturday, but Rikako Ikee could not match her compatriot and was eliminated in their semifinal.
Hirai and Ikee looked to be on the way to the final after the first 50 meters at Paris La Defense Arena, with the 17-year-old Hirai turning second behind American Gretchen Walsh and Ikee third. Both Japanese fell back from the world record holder down the stretch, though, with Hirai slipping to third and Ikee to sixth.
Walsh touched in an Olympic record 55.38 seconds in the first heat, 1.42 ahead of Hirai and 2.41 faster than Ikee.
"The time was far off my target. I'll look to make adjustments heading into the final," Hirai said.
"I had my best lap time at the turn but the second lap was really tough, I think I tensed up."
Hirai's time saw her ranked seventh overall after the second heat, won by American Torri Huske, putting her into the final. Ikee's time was only the 12th fastest.
Chinese star and reigning 100 butterfly world champion Zhang Yufei set the third-fastest time.
The 100 butterfly was the only chance Ikee had at winning an individual medal in Paris. The 24-year-old has become a well-known figure in Japan after she bounced back from a leukemia diagnosis in February 2019 to compete in three relay events at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
Previously she had competed in individual Olympic events at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games.
With Walsh, Huske and Zhang the medal favorites, Hirai will have to step up if she is to reach the podium.
"I'll be racing at the edge of the pool (in the final) but look to give all I have and strive to get a medal," she said.
