Luxembourg swimmer Rémi Fabiani set a new national record of 24.73 seconds to secure his place in the 50m backstroke semi-finals. Out of 72 competitors, he posted the 13th fastest time and was listed for the first semi-final, which was scheduled for 7pm but started with a slight delay. The second semi-final followed three minutes later.

In his own race, Fabiani finished eighth and last with a time of 24.96 seconds. Among the 16 swimmers who reached the semi-finals, his was the slowest time.

The top two athletes from each semi-final automatically qualified for the final, while the remaining four spots were awarded to the fastest swimmers outside the top two in each heat. This meant that Fabiani had no chance of advancing further immediately after his race. The fastest time in his semi-final was set by Russia’s Pavel Samusenko, who touched the wall at 24.03 seconds. In the second semi-final, Russian swimmer Kliment Kolesnikov was quickest with 24.14 seconds.