Dunedin swimmer Erika Fairweather Photo: Simon Watts BW Media
World class New Zealand swimmer Erika Fairweather breezed through world championships qualification on day two of the national trials in Auckland.
Dunedin freestyle star Fairweather didn't wait for the finals to lock in qualification in the 200m event, swimming 1min 57.67sec in her heat to go a second under the required time.
The 2023 world championship bronze medallist then picked up the pace in the final, flying home over the last 50m to finish in a quicker time of 1:57.23.
"That felt tough," Fairweather said.
"It's been a busy few months but you can't be unhappy with going under the qualifying time.
"I'm back home to Dunedin now for a bit of R and R, and then back on the horse and start a big training block going into Doha."
Fairweather has previously qualified for the Doha world championships in the 400m and 800m distances.
Sixteen-year-old North Shore swimmer Monique Wieruszowski was the other standout performer on day two of the trials, breaking the New Zealand record in the women's 100m breaststroke.
Despite choking on a mouthful of water at the end of her first 50m, the young swimmer clocked 1:08.68 to knock .06sec off her own previous mark.
"This just means I'm one step closer to the Paris Olympics so I'm pretty happy about that," Wieruszowski said.
"I felt pretty good out there today, a few technical things to work on but happy with that swim overall."
Despite setting the national record, Wieruszowski's time was just over a second outside the required time for Doha qualification.