Rikke Pedersen, 24, clocked two minutes 19.11 seconds to beat the previous mark of 2:19.59 set by American Rebecca Soni at the Olympic Games in London last year.
Images from the 15th FINA World Swimming Championships held in Barcelona on Thursday.
Russia's Yuliya Efimova followed up Friday's world championship gold medal in the women's 200 metres breaststroke by setting a world record in the 50 metres version of the event in her heat on Saturday.
Mitchell Larkin completed a rare backstroke double and Bronte Campbell won the blue riband women's 100 metres freestyle title as Australia celebrated another golden night at the world swimming championships.
Chad Le Clos took his fourth gold medal in Doha on Sunday and became the first male swimmer to win all three butterfly distances in a single world short-course swimming championships.
Joseph Schooling won the men's 100 meters butterfly final on Friday to secure Singapore's first Olympic gold medal and deny Michael Phelps a 23rd in the last individual race of the American's extraordinary career.
Olympic champion Ruta Meilutyte of Lithuania set a European and world championship record in the heats for the 100 metres breaststroke in Barcelona on Monday.
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