Watch 19-year-old Keaton Jones (@keatonjones_swim) of the USA set a world record in the 50m backstroke at the IISA 5th World Championship here in Samoëns, France a year ago. What is most incredible about his first record-shattering swim of his emerging ice swimming career is that he had a poor start, a very long, slow glide into the turn, and a very short push off the water in the 25m short course pool.

But in between the backstroke flags, there is no one faster.

On his back, Jones was flying.

How fast can the 2024 Paris Olympian swim the 50m and 100m backstrokes at the IISA 6th World Championship in the 50m straightaway long course pool in Molveno, Italy? That is anyone’s guess. Watch the live coverage of the World Championship here, hosted by Olympic swim coach Chris Morgan (@swim4chris) and organized by Ice Swimming Hall of Fame Honor Swimmer Paolo Chiarino (@paolochiarino).

Jones (IISA bio here) will swim the 100m backstroke in Heat 9 on Day 1, January 14th where he will be pushed by second-seeded Virgile Deage of France (@virgile_deage, IISA bio here). The men’s 100m backstroke finals are held later, starting at 5:35 pm local time. Jones’ current 100m backstroke world record of 1:00.27 is expected to fall.

Jones will swim the 50m backstroke in Heat 9 on Day 2, January 15th where he will be pushed by second-seeded Filip Jicha of the Czech Republic (@_jicha_filip_, IISA bio here) and third-seeded Michal Tomaszowski of Poland (@_tomaszowsky, IISA bio here). The men’s 50m backstroke finals are held later, starting at 5:10 pm local time. Jone’s current 50m backstroke world record of 27.93 is expected to fall.

The rules of backstroke in World Aquatics competitions and the rules of backstroke in International Ice Swimming Association (@international_ice_swimming) competitions are drastically different.

IISA Rules – Backstroke Start

• Standing next to the ladder, facing the wall.
• One hand holding the ladder, other hand free. Front shoulder below the surface.
• Once you push off the wall you must proceed in your swim stroke.

IISA Rules – Backstroke Turns [old style turn – no flips]

• Touch the pool wall with at least one hand on your back.
• The turn is an open turn with legs reaching the pool wall and body turns 180° and pushing off the wall on your back.

IISA Rules – Backstroke Finish

• At least one hand touching the pool wall on your back with at least one hand touching the wall.
• When touching the wall, head must break surface.

World Aquatics Rules – Backstroke Start

• Prior to the starting signal, the swimmers shall line up in the water facing the starting end, with both hands holding the starting grips. Standing in or on the gutter or bending the toes over the lip of the gutter is prohibited. When using a backstroke ledge at the start, at least one toe of each foot must be in contact with the end wall or face of the touchpad. Bending the toes over the top of the touchpad is prohibited.
• At the signal for starting and after turning the swimmer shall push off and swim upon their back throughout the race except when executing a turn as set forth in Part Two, Article 6.4. The normal position on the back can include a roll movement of the body up to, but not including 90 degrees from horizontal. The position of the head is not relevant.
• Some part of the swimmer must break the surface of the water throughout the race, except that once some part of the head of the swimmer has passed the 5 metres mark immediately prior to reaching for the finish, the swimmer may be completely submerged. It is also permissible for the swimmer to be completely submerged during the turn, and for a distance of not more than 15 metres after the start and each turn. By that point the head must have broken the surface.

World Aquatics Rules – Backstroke Turns

• When executing the turn there must be a touch of the wall with some part of the swimmer’s body. During the turn, the shoulders may be turned over the vertical to the breast after which an immediate continuous single arm pull or immediate continuous simultaneous double arm pull may be used to initiate the turn. The swimmer must have returned to the position on the back upon leaving the wall.

World Aquatics Rules – Backstroke Finish

• Upon the finish of the race the swimmer must touch the wall while on the back.

Keaton Jones sets a new International Ice Swimming Association world record in the 100m backstroke at the IISA 5th World Championship in Samoëns, France:

https://youtu.be/w-XJ4jj3Vj8

Several new world records will be set, predicted by ice swimming prognosticator Steven Munatones (@steven.munatones). “Great swimmers like Keaton – and his fellow competitors like Virgile Deage, Filip Jicha, and Michal Tomaszowski – possess not only outstanding physiological talent, but like many great open water swimmers, they also have a profound sense of proprioception in the water. So whether they compete under new 21st century World Aquatics backstroke rules or the IISA rules that hark back to the very early days of competitive swimming, they can adapt to the rules and always swim fast.

But with more ice swimming experience, someone like Keaton will continue to be a leader in the upper echelon of competitive ice swimming.

In Molveno, we will not only see this increased speed and stamina among the fastest swimmers who tend to be younger, but also across all age groups and among the para swimmers too.”

On the women’s side on Day 1, it will be a great battle among the top seeded women in the 100m backstroke. The athletes include 19-year-old Simona Andreea Chirus of Romania (1:12.00, IISA bio here, shown above on left), 17-year-old Maria Nielsen of Denmark (1:12.03, IISA bio here, shown above in middle), Heidi Winter of New Zealand (1:13.05, IISA bio here), and Keaton’s younger sister 17-year-old Ezmee Jones of the USA(1:13.69, IISA bio here, @ezmeejones, shown above on right).

The women will have to really push to come closer to Laura Quilter’s current world record of 1:09.12 in the 100m backstroke that she set at the 2024 New Zealand and Southern Hemisphere Pool Championships.

On Day 2 in the women’s 50m backstroke, it is going to be a close race between top-seeded swimmers 21-year-old Maeva Giunchi Damaz of France (35.00, IISA bio here), Maria Nelsen of Denmark (35.03), Ezmee Jones of the USA (35.06), 21-year-old Marie Therese Bartl of Germany (36.00, IISA bio here) and 27-year-old Lilianne Sweere of the Netherlands (36.10, IISA bio here).

Similar to the women’s current 100m backstroke world record by Quilter, Ludivine Blanc of France (@_ludivineblanc) is well ahead of the field with a current world record in the 50m backstroke in 32.90.

The Molveno pool is ready as 754 athletes representing 48 countries around the world are descending upon the Italian epicenter of ice swimming over the next week.

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