On Tuesday De Groot had made an impression by winning his semi -final in a Dutch record of 26.71 seconds. That made him seven hundredths faster than his own top time.
Although there were three more people faster in the other semi -final, he was able to look forward to the final with confidence. De Groot did not have the best start of the field from Baan 6 and could no longer repair that backlog. He tapped in 26.81 and was only a good tenth behind the bronze. Simone Cerasuolo took the world title with a time of 26.54.
Maaike de Waard
Just before that, Maaike de Waard swam her semi -final on the 50 meter backstroke. She noted a time of 27.87 and with that she finished as a fourteenth, which was not enough for a place in the battle for the medals.
This made De Waard more slower than in the series, when she had qualified for the semi -finals in a time of 27.82. The American Regan Smith was the fastest. She tapped after 27.23 seconds.