The 2025 European Short Course Championships in Lublin, Poland, unfold December 2–7 at a 25-meter pool, with a schedule featuring key events like the Women’s 200m IM, Men’s 200m IM, Men’s 800m freestyle, Women’s 100m freestyle, and Men’s 100m freestyle. A notable development ahead of Day 4 is the likely withdrawal of Portuguese record holder Diogo Matos Ribeiro from the entire meet, after scratches in the 100 free (he entered as the 13th seed with 46.55), 50 fly, and 100 fly across the first three days. Although no official statement has been issued, sources indicate Ribeiro may skip all events, a significant blow to the Portuguese men’s team which has yet to advance a swimmer to an individual semi-final. In contrast, the women’s team has posted strong performances, including national records in the 100 back, 200 back, and 100 breast, with Camila Rodrigues Rebelo narrowly missing the podium in the 200 back with a fourth-place finish, just half a second behind 3 podium spots.
Other notable scratches include Barbara Seemanova, who withdrew on medical advice, and Smilte Plytnykaite, the #27 seed in the women’s 200 IM. Plytnykaite’s focus appears to have shifted toward the 50 breast tomorrow, following a three-second improvement in her 100 breast semi-finals on Wednesday. In the men’s races, Emre Sakci and Kregor Zirk will not swim the 100 free (entered with no time) and will instead target tomorrow’s events: Sakci in the 50 breast—where he holds the world record at 24.95—and Zirk in the 200 fly.
Sakci has already earned a medal in Lublin, taking silver in the 100 breast (56.22). Zirk’s best result so far is the 400 free, where he touched 3:40.65—just 0.05 off his personal best and Estonian national record of 3:40.60—and contributed to the Estonian record-setting 4×50 free relay in the heats.
All scratches listed include: Women’s 200 IM – Smilte Plytnykaite (LTU) 2:13.43; Men’s 200 IM – Abdurahman Rustamov (AZE) NT; Women’s 100 Free – Barbara Seemanova (CZE) 53.02, Diana Petkova (BUL) NT; Men’s 100 Free – Diogo Matos Ribeiro (POR) 46.55, Emre Sakci (TUR) NT, Kregor Zirk (EST) NT. Session coverage and live results remain available through Omega Timing and SwimSwam’s recap pages.
If this interpretation holds, Ribeiro’s absence will mark a rare instance of a top national swimmer skipping an entire major meet, prompting debates about scheduling, risk management, and the depth of Portugal’s sprint and fly events this season. How do you view a star athlete stepping back from a meet like this? Do such withdrawals reshape team strategy or player development in the long run? Share your thoughts in the comments.
