American Ryan Murphy won the men's 100m backstroke title at swimming's world championships on Tuesday.
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Murphy finished in 52.22sec to beat Italy's defending champion Thomas Ceccon on 52.27 and American Hunter Armstrong on 52.58.
It was the Americans' second gold medal of the night, after Katie Ledecky won the women's 1 500m freestyle earlier in the evening.
"It was an incredible race," Murphy said.
"It's awesome to go against a great field, and awesome to get two Americans on the podium."
???? @ryan_f_murphy with an amazing comeback on the second 50m to take home gold in the men’s 100m back // ??52.22#Swimming #AQUAFukuoka23 pic.twitter.com/9tFuuC0ICs
— World Aquatics (@WorldAquatics) July 25, 2023
Ceccon was attempting to defend the world title he won in a world-record time of 51.60sec last year in Budapest.
"I kind of pride myself on being pretty versatile in the race," Murphy said.
"I think there have been times when I've gone out fast and times when I've come back fast."
Ceccon won the 50m butterfly on Monday.