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Popov turns back the clock to claim 100 m gold
Barcelona, July 25: Michael Phelps of the United States broke his own world record for the men`s 200 metres individual medley and Japan`s Kosuke Kitajima delivered a second world record in the men`s 200 metres final at the world swimming championships in Spain.
Barcelona, July 25: Michael Phelps of the United States broke his own world record for the men's 200 metres individual medley and Japan's Kosuke Kitajima delivered a second world record in the men's 200 metres final at the world swimming championships in Spain.
Japan's Kosuke Kitajima completed an impressive breaststroke double with victory in the men's 200 metres final in world record time at the world swimming championships on Thursday (July 24).
The 20-year-old student, the winner of the 100 title in a world record 59.78 seconds on Monday (July 21), touched in two minutes 09.42 seconds to break the 2:09.52 swum by Russia's Dmitry Komornikov in June.
Britain's Ian Edmond finished second in 2:10.92, while defending 200 world champion Brendan Hansen of the United States was third in 2:11.11.
Kitajima had briefly held the 200 record after breaking it at the Asian Games last year before losing it to Komornikov. He had boldly predicted that he would enter the record books again at Barcelona after grabbing the 200 record last October and repeated the tactic after his semi-final in the 200 on Wednesday when he clocked 2:09.73, the second-fastest time ever.
That boldness paid off as he proved a class above the field, constantly putting both records under pressure before he managed to break them in the finals.
On Thursday (July 24), Kitajima and Hansen set a blistering pace with the Japanese swimmer almost 0.7 seconds under world record pace at the 50 metre mark when he turned in 29.46.
However, Hansen dragged the smaller man back and turned in 1:02.35, a full second under the record at the 100, while Kitajima was 0.12 behind.
Kitajima then re-took the lead on the third length and turned 0.9 under the world record pace of 1:35.75 to power away down the final 50 metres and sneak under Komornikov's mark.
As he looked at the clock Kitajima clenched his fist in victory but then his face turned to disappointment and he punched the water in frustration as he realised he had not broken the 2:08 mark that he had set for himself after the semi-finals.
Michael Phelps of the United States broke his own world record for the men's 200 metres individual medley in the semi-finals in Barcelona. Phelps, who also won the 200 butterfly on Wednesday (July 23), touched in one minute 57.52 seconds to beat the 1:57.94 he set last month in Santa Clara, California.
Australia's Ian Thorpe, the 200 and 400 freestyle champion, finished in fourth place in the same semi-final. The Australian was the second, in a time of 2:00.42, to qualify fifth fastest for Friday's final.
Italy's Olympic champion Massimiliano Rosolino, also in the second semi-final, was second fastest in 1:59.84 while Trinidad and Tobago's George Bovell, who won the first semi-final, was third fastest overall in 1:59.86.
Phelps, who set the old record the day before his 18th birthday last month, stormed out to a flying start and was just 0.02 seconds over the record at the end of the butterfly length. He was then challenged by Japan's Takahiro Mori down the backstroke length, while Thorpe turned at the 100 mark in third.
Rosolino, who was fourth at the end of the 100 split, then made his move try to catch Phelps on the breaststroke with Phelps turning for home 0.32 outside the world record split of 1:30.00, while the Italian was just 0.54 behind.
However, Thorpe, who only added the 200 IM to his schedule in Barcelona and had just sneaked into the semi-finals after qualifying 14th equal, again lost ground on the breaststroke leg and turned for the sprint home in last place.
He attempted to catch Phelps with the fastest freestyle of all eight qualifiers (26.77), but the young American had built up too much of a lead on the breaststroke -- he was more than two seconds faster -- and touched to break his own record.
Russia's Alexander Popov turned back the clock to reclaim the title he could not defend in 2001 to win the men's 100 metres freestyle gold medal. Popov, a double Olympic and world champion in the event who missed the 2001 championships with illness, touched in 48.42 seconds, just ahead of Olympic champion and world record holder Pieter van den Hoogenband of the Netherlands (48.68) and Australia's 200 and 400 champion Ian Thorpe (48.77).
The 31-year-old, the second-fastest qualifier in 48.51, led all the way down the first length and turned just in front of van den Hoogenband in under world record time. He then held his lead down the second length to claim his third world 100 metres title, just edging out van den Hoogenband and a fast-finishing Thorpe.
Russian-born Nina Zhivanevskaya brought Spain their first gold of the world swimming championships with civtory in the women's 50 metres backstroke.
European champion Zhivanevskaya, who settled in Spain in 1997 after competing at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics for her native Russia, touched just ahead of Ilona Hlavackova of the Czech Republic, who had appeared to hold the edge until they hit the wall.
Zhivanevskaya, the fastest qualifier from Wednesday's semi-finals, clocked a championship record 28.48 seconds, with Hlavackova taking the silver in 28.50 and Noriko Inada of Japan the bronze in 28.62.
American defending champion Haley Cope was eighth and last in 28.99. The United States won the women's 4x200 metres freestyle relay, coming desperately close to expunging the last East German world record, the oldest mark in the long-course book.
The American quartet of Lindsay Benko, Rachel Komisarz, Rhiannon Jeffrey and Diana Munz were on course to crack the record until the very end, when Munz touched in seven minutes 55.70 seconds to miss it by a tantalising 0.23 seconds.
Australia were second in 7:58.42 and China third in 7:58.53. The Americans claimed the second-fastest time in history and a championship record, but the 7:55.47 world mark set by Manuela Stellmach, Astrid Strauss, Anke Moehring and Heike Friedrich at the 1987 European championships in Strasbourg still stands.
Selected results: Men's 200 metres breaststroke final 1. Kosuke Kitajima (Japan) 2:09.42 (world record) 2. Ian Edmond (Britain) 2:10.92 3. Brendan Hansen (U.S.) 2:11.11 4. Jim Piper (Australia) 2:11.55 5. Dmitry Komornikov (Russia) 2:12.30 6. Andrey Ivanov (Russia) 2:13.20 7. Michael Brown (Canada) 2:13.30 8. Maxim Podoprigora (Austria) 2:13.33
Men's 200 metres individual medley semifinal 1. Michael Phelps (U.S.) one minute 57.52 seconds (world record) 2. Massimiliano Rosolino (Italy) 1:59.84 3. George R Bovell (Trinidad) 1:59.86 4. Takahiro Mori (Japan) 2:00.29 5. Ian Thorpe (Australia) 2:00.42 6. Brian Johns (Canada) 2:00.98 7. Kevin Clements (U.S.) 2:01.04 8. Jani Sievinen (Finland) 2:01.08
Men's 100 metres freestyle final 1. Alexander Popov (Russia) 48.42 2. Pieter Van Den Hoogenband (Netherlands) 48.68 3. Ian Thorpe (Australia) 48.77 4. Jason Lezak (U.S.) 48.94 5. Andrei Kapralov (Russia) 48.95 6. Frederick Bousquet (France) 49.30 7. Ryk Neethling (South Africa) 49.51 8. Milorad Cavic (Yugoslavia) 49.65
Women's 50 metres backstroke final 1. Nina Zhivanevskaya (Spain) 28.48 2. Ilona Hlavackova (Czech Republic) 28.50 3. Noriko Inada (Japan) 28.62 4. Jennifer Carroll (Canada) 28.65 5. Sandra Volker (Germany) 28.69 6. Louise Ornstedt (Denmark) 28.93 7. Laure Manaudou (France) 28.98 8. Haley Cope (U.S.) 28.99
Women's 4 x 200 metres freestyle relay final 1. United States seven minutes 55.70 seconds (Lindsay Benko, Rachel Komisarz, Rhiannon Jeffrey, Diana Munz) 2. Australia 7:58.42 (Elka
That boldness paid off as he proved a class above the field, constantly putting both records under pressure before he managed to break them in the finals.
On Thursday (July 24), Kitajima and Hansen set a blistering pace with the Japanese swimmer almost 0.7 seconds under world record pace at the 50 metre mark when he turned in 29.46.
However, Hansen dragged the smaller man back and turned in 1:02.35, a full second under the record at the 100, while Kitajima was 0.12 behind.
Kitajima then re-took the lead on the third length and turned 0.9 under the world record pace of 1:35.75 to power away down the final 50 metres and sneak under Komornikov's mark.
As he looked at the clock Kitajima clenched his fist in victory but then his face turned to disappointment and he punched the water in frustration as he realised he had not broken the 2:08 mark that he had set for himself after the semi-finals.
Michael Phelps of the United States broke his own world record for the men's 200 metres individual medley in the semi-finals in Barcelona. Phelps, who also won the 200 butterfly on Wednesday (July 23), touched in one minute 57.52 seconds to beat the 1:57.94 he set last month in Santa Clara, California.
Australia's Ian Thorpe, the 200 and 400 freestyle champion, finished in fourth place in the same semi-final. The Australian was the second, in a time of 2:00.42, to qualify fifth fastest for Friday's final.
Italy's Olympic champion Massimiliano Rosolino, also in the second semi-final, was second fastest in 1:59.84 while Trinidad and Tobago's George Bovell, who won the first semi-final, was third fastest overall in 1:59.86.
Phelps, who set the old record the day before his 18th birthday last month, stormed out to a flying start and was just 0.02 seconds over the record at the end of the butterfly length. He was then challenged by Japan's Takahiro Mori down the backstroke length, while Thorpe turned at the 100 mark in third.
Rosolino, who was fourth at the end of the 100 split, then made his move try to catch Phelps on the breaststroke with Phelps turning for home 0.32 outside the world record split of 1:30.00, while the Italian was just 0.54 behind.
However, Thorpe, who only added the 200 IM to his schedule in Barcelona and had just sneaked into the semi-finals after qualifying 14th equal, again lost ground on the breaststroke leg and turned for the sprint home in last place.
He attempted to catch Phelps with the fastest freestyle of all eight qualifiers (26.77), but the young American had built up too much of a lead on the breaststroke -- he was more than two seconds faster -- and touched to break his own record.
Russia's Alexander Popov turned back the clock to reclaim the title he could not defend in 2001 to win the men's 100 metres freestyle gold medal. Popov, a double Olympic and world champion in the event who missed the 2001 championships with illness, touched in 48.42 seconds, just ahead of Olympic champion and world record holder Pieter van den Hoogenband of the Netherlands (48.68) and Australia's 200 and 400 champion Ian Thorpe (48.77).
The 31-year-old, the second-fastest qualifier in 48.51, led all the way down the first length and turned just in front of van den Hoogenband in under world record time. He then held his lead down the second length to claim his third world 100 metres title, just edging out van den Hoogenband and a fast-finishing Thorpe.
Russian-born Nina Zhivanevskaya brought Spain their first gold of the world swimming championships with civtory in the women's 50 metres backstroke.
European champion Zhivanevskaya, who settled in Spain in 1997 after competing at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics for her native Russia, touched just ahead of Ilona Hlavackova of the Czech Republic, who had appeared to hold the edge until they hit the wall.
Zhivanevskaya, the fastest qualifier from Wednesday's semi-finals, clocked a championship record 28.48 seconds, with Hlavackova taking the silver in 28.50 and Noriko Inada of Japan the bronze in 28.62.
American defending champion Haley Cope was eighth and last in 28.99. The United States won the women's 4x200 metres freestyle relay, coming desperately close to expunging the last East German world record, the oldest mark in the long-course book.
The American quartet of Lindsay Benko, Rachel Komisarz, Rhiannon Jeffrey and Diana Munz were on course to crack the record until the very end, when Munz touched in seven minutes 55.70 seconds to miss it by a tantalising 0.23 seconds.
Australia were second in 7:58.42 and China third in 7:58.53. The Americans claimed the second-fastest time in history and a championship record, but the 7:55.47 world mark set by Manuela Stellmach, Astrid Strauss, Anke Moehring and Heike Friedrich at the 1987 European championships in Strasbourg still stands.
Selected results: Men's 200 metres breaststroke final 1. Kosuke Kitajima (Japan) 2:09.42 (world record) 2. Ian Edmond (Britain) 2:10.92 3. Brendan Hansen (U.S.) 2:11.11 4. Jim Piper (Australia) 2:11.55 5. Dmitry Komornikov (Russia) 2:12.30 6. Andrey Ivanov (Russia) 2:13.20 7. Michael Brown (Canada) 2:13.30 8. Maxim Podoprigora (Austria) 2:13.33
Men's 200 metres individual medley semifinal 1. Michael Phelps (U.S.) one minute 57.52 seconds (world record) 2. Massimiliano Rosolino (Italy) 1:59.84 3. George R Bovell (Trinidad) 1:59.86 4. Takahiro Mori (Japan) 2:00.29 5. Ian Thorpe (Australia) 2:00.42 6. Brian Johns (Canada) 2:00.98 7. Kevin Clements (U.S.) 2:01.04 8. Jani Sievinen (Finland) 2:01.08
Men's 100 metres freestyle final 1. Alexander Popov (Russia) 48.42 2. Pieter Van Den Hoogenband (Netherlands) 48.68 3. Ian Thorpe (Australia) 48.77 4. Jason Lezak (U.S.) 48.94 5. Andrei Kapralov (Russia) 48.95 6. Frederick Bousquet (France) 49.30 7. Ryk Neethling (South Africa) 49.51 8. Milorad Cavic (Yugoslavia) 49.65
Women's 50 metres backstroke final 1. Nina Zhivanevskaya (Spain) 28.48 2. Ilona Hlavackova (Czech Republic) 28.50 3. Noriko Inada (Japan) 28.62 4. Jennifer Carroll (Canada) 28.65 5. Sandra Volker (Germany) 28.69 6. Louise Ornstedt (Denmark) 28.93 7. Laure Manaudou (France) 28.98 8. Haley Cope (U.S.) 28.99
Women's 4 x 200 metres freestyle relay final 1. United States seven minutes 55.70 seconds (Lindsay Benko, Rachel Komisarz, Rhiannon Jeffrey, Diana Munz) 2. Australia 7:58.42 (Elka