Tashkent marks world record No. 199 in a Myrtha pool

South Africa’s Pieter Coetze set a new world record of 22.09 to win the men’s 50m backstroke in Tashkent on Friday. The 22-year-old improved on 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 performance 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, takes place across Baku (1–3 October), Tashkent (8–10 October) and Astana (15–17 October). All three stops are hosted in Myrtha pools.

The Tashkent stop takes place at a recently completed aquatic centre featuring two 50m pools, one for competition and one for warm-up, as well as a diving pool.

The total reached 198 in Baku on 2 October, when Kornev equalled the men’s 100m 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 to come, the 200th world record is within reach.