Tashkent marks world record No. 199 in a Myrtha pool

South Africa’s Pieter Coetze won the men’s 50-meter backstroke in Tashkent on Friday with a world-record time of 22.09. The 22-year-old broke the previous mark of 22.11, set by Russia’s Kliment Kolesnikov in 2022, bringing the total number of world records set in Myrtha pools to 199.

His swim also broke the World Cup record of 22.23, set by Russia’s Egor Kornev in Baku a week earlier. The 2026 World Aquatics Swimming World Cup, known as the Silk Road Tour, runs through Baku (October 1–3), Tashkent (October 8–10) and Astana (October 15–17). All three stops take place in Myrtha pools.

The Tashkent stop is hosted at a recently completed aquatics center featuring two 50-meter pools, one for competition and one for warmup, plus a diving pool.

The total reached 198 in Baku on October 2, when Kornev tied the men’s 100-meter freestyle short-course world record of 44.84. The latest result in Tashkent adds another record to the tally. With the final stop in Astana still ahead, the 200th world record is within reach.