By Sam Blacker on SwimSwam
European Swimming Championships
August 10-16, 2026 Paris, France — Olympic Aquatics Centre LCM (50 Meters) Meet Information Meet Central SwimSwam Preview IndexBY THE NUMBERS – WOMEN’S 4×100 MEDLEY RELAY
World Record: 3:49.34 – USA (2025) European Record: 3:53.38 – Russia (2017) Championship Record: 3:54.01 – 3:54.01 (2021) 2025 World Champion: USA, 3:49.34 2024 European Champion: Poland, 3:58.71There have been four different winners from the last four editions of the European Championships in the women’s 4×100 medley relay, with nine different teams standing on the podium at the last three editions – not one team has returned to the podium in the 2020s.
The streak of new winners may continue this season. Marrit Steenbergen is the best female swimmer in Europe right now, and she has a strong team behind her as the Dutch seek their first title for 60 years.
Turning A New Page?
The Netherlands DNS’d this relay at the World Championships last summer, and have not won a European title since 1966. They won bronze five years ago with a team of Kira Toussaint, Tes Schouten, Maaike de Waard, and Marrit Steenbergen, and at least half of that quartet should feature again.
Steenbergen is the Netherlands’ star swimmer and has most often been seen on the anchor leg, where she has delivered multiple 51-point splits, but the best combination for the Dutch this year could be to have her on backstroke. She set a new lifetime best of 58.33, over a second faster than de Waard is entered in, and Milou van Wijk looks an able deputy on freestyle.
Based on lifetime bests, it is slightly faster to keep her on the anchor, but the order may depend on who has the hot hand by the end of the meet. Tes Schouten and Tessa Giele should be locks on the middle two legs, with either Steenbergen/van Wijk or de Waard/Steenbergen sandwiching them.
Either combination could be a winner. If Giele is in 57-low form, as she was last summer, then this is the most complete relay here. Schouten looks to be back in form after missing last season with injury, and Steenbergen is having the season of her life.
Podium Hopefuls
Russia, under the guise of Neutral Athletes B, are probably the favorites for silver with no real weak spot across their four legs. They placed 4th at the World Championships last summer in 3:55.17, and return all four legs with none of them over the age of 22.
Alina Gaufutdinova has an entry time of 59.51 in the 100 back, 0.36 seconds faster than her 59.87 leadoff from last year, but Evgenia Chikunova may still be around the 1:06-flat mark on the second leg. She has a lifetime best of 1:04.92 from 2023, but has not been particularly close to that over the last couple of years.
That shouldn’t be too big an issue however, as a relatively strong split for the breaststroke leg, and Daria Klepikova may be the fastest in the field on fly. She split 55.95 last summer, half a second under her flat start best of 56.42.
Daria Trofimova anchored in 53.16 at the World Championships, but split 52.42 on the mixed 4×100 free relay. Her season best of 54.08 is slower than Aleksandra Kuznetsova‘s 53.80, so it could come down to whoever has the better individual performance.
Great Britain were 8th at the World Championships last year, but look stronger in all areas except for one. Lauren Cox led off 12 months ago in a time of 59.59, but, despite setting a lifetime best of 59.45 earlier this season, looked a little off at the Commonwealth Games. Her best swim in Glasgow was 1:00.35, which she will need to match at a minimum to give her team any chance at the title.
Their ace comes on breaststroke where Angharad Evans has proven to be a world class performer even when she is not swimming her best individually. She has split 1:04-point on four occasions this season, the fastest of them a 1:04.41 which no other nation here can match. Great Britain should be near the front of the field at the halfway point, and if Cox hands over in under 60 seconds then they could hold a lead.
The fastest second half of the race for them looks to be Scottish record holder Keanna MacInnes on fly (57.33) and Welsh record holder Theodora Taylor on free (54.00). Taylor split 52.63 at the Commonwealth Games, which may bump her ahead of Freya Colbert (53.41 split).
That should be a medal-contending quartet, but they may not have the strength on the back half to match the Russian or Dutch team if Cox is a second or more off her PB again, with MacInnes tending to split slightly slower than her flat start times. Reclaiming the title they won in 2021 could be a tall order.
Missing Pieces
Italy need to find themselves a backstroker, with no one under 1:00 for them this season and their fastest backstroker also being their fastest freestyler. With Sara Curtis on anchor duties, Federica Toma is the likely leadoff despite a season best of 1:00.59.
They have both strength and depth on breaststroke, with Benedetta Pilato under 1:06 this season at 1:05.85, and Anita Bottazzo (1:05.61) and Lisa Angiolini (1:06.00) having similarly swift lifetime bests. Anita Gastaldi (58.10) should be the fly leg, with Silvia di Pietro only swimming 50s at this stage of her career.
Sara Curtis (52.69) is one of the best anchor legs in the field, but may have too much work to do. Really, Italy need either Toma or Gastaldi to swim above themselves on their leg to feel confident of making the podium.
France have the fastest backstroker in Europe this season in Mary-Ambre Moluh, but breaststroker Chloe Braun is yet to break 1:08 and won the French Elite Championships in 1:08.31. That is some way off the other teams here, and may put France in a hole they can’t climb out of.
Marie Wattel and Beryl Gastaldello is a strong back half, although neither are quite in their peak any more. They aren’t in the same team as Italy and the three teams in the section above, and their weakness on breaststroke may slide them down into the mid-pack battle.
Germany need Lisa Seidel to at least replicate her 1:01-flat backstroke leadoff from the World Championships last year, as they have possibly the best engine room of any nation here. Anna Elendt won the world title in the 100 breast last season while Angelina Kohler was 6th in the 100 fly and won the 2024 world title.
The anchor leg is up in the air, with four swimmers between 54.30 and 54.47 this season, but Nina Holt split 53.22 last summer and is probably in pole position to feature.
Racing For The Final
Poland won gold two years ago in a national record of 3:58.71, but were nearly seven seconds slower at the World Championships last summer in a time of 4:05.40 as they placed 16th.
Adela Piskorska, Dominika Sztandera, and Kornelia Fiedkiewicz all return from the title-winning quartet of two years ago, with one of Flawia Kamzol (58.90) and Barbara Lesniewska (58.78) replacing Paulina Peda‘s 58.15 split on fly. None of the returning trio have looked quite as good as they did in 2024 though, and the fight this time may be to ensure they finish in the top eight in the heats.
Sweden’s performance will likely depend on whether Sara Sjostrom swims or not, but with it no guarantee that they make the final it doesn’t seem likely that she will. They don’t have anyone entered in the women’s 100 back, so it would likely be Louise Hansson who swims that leg which would require Sara Junevik on fly.
None of the Swedish breaststrokers are entered under 1:08, which looks to be their weakest leg, and even if Sjostrom did elect to anchor she would be dragging them to a spot in the final at best, not towards the podium. Sofia Astedt probably swims freestyle instead, and making the final will be a struggle.
Similarly to Sweden, Spain have a weakness on breaststroke with no swimmers entered in the 100 and only one swimmer, Maria Ramos Najji, entered in the 50. They have a relatively young team, with Irene Ciercoles Galve (16) on backstroke, Laura Cabanes Garzas (20) on fly, and Maria Daza Garcia (18) on free. The final looks a little more likely for them than it does for the Swedes, but it would still be some achievement one year on from placing 17th at the World Championships in 4:05.49.
SwimSwam’s Picks
Place Name Season Best Add-Up 2024 Result 1 Netherlands 3:55.70 – 2 Neutral Athletes B 3:57.26 – 3 Great Britain 3:55.74 – 4 Italy 3:07.23 – 5 Germany 3:58.42 – 6 France 3:58.51 – 7 Spain 4:01.71 – 8 Poland 4:02.05 1stDark Horse – Ireland
Ireland haven’t often swum this relay, but are entered this year and look to have a strong shot at a finals appearance with a team of Danielle Hill/Lottie Cullen, Mona McSharry, Ellen Walshe, and Grace Davison. McSharry may have the 50 breast final, but otherwise the final day is free of any doubles for this four, and they could bring the national record under 4:00 for the first time after clocking 4:00.12 in the heats last time they were in Paris four years ago.
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