Sjostrom breaks 100 fly record
Print Edition
THE women are getting it done at the swimming world championships.
Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden lowered her own world record in the 100-meter butterfly to win gold last night, after first breaking the mark set by American Dana Vollmer at the 2012 London Olympics in the semifinals on Sunday.
Earlier yesterday, American teenager Katie Ledecky bettered her own world record in the 1,500 freestyle preliminaries.
Three world records set in the first two days of pool swimming — and all by women.
Sjostrom led at the turn and won by a body length, touching in 55.64 seconds. She dipped a hundredth of a second lower than her mark a day earlier while finishing 1.41 seconds ahead of Jeanette Ottesen of Denmark.
Ottesen earned silver in 57.05 and Lu Ying of China took bronze in 57.48.
Sjostrom retained the world title she won two years ago in Barcelona.
Adam Peaty gave Britain its first gold medal in the temporary pool at Kazan Arena with a comeback victory in the 100 breaststroke.
Former world record holder and current Olympic champion Cameron van der Burgh of South Africa led at the turn under Peaty’s pace set in April. But Peaty overtook van der Burgh in the closing meter, getting his hand on the wall in 58.52 for the gold. Van der Burgh was second in 58.59. Peaty’s teammate, Ross Murdoch, took third in 59.09.
“I turned and I saw his foot and I was like, ‘Right, I’ve got some catching up to do now’,” Peaty said. “About 25 meters out he was still in front so I was a bit skeptical. But I remembered what I trained for is moments like this and I came out on top thankfully.”
Van der Burgh’s strategy was to go out fast and try to make Peaty catch him.
“It was hard. A pile of bricks came down on me in the last five meters,” Van der Burgh said.
“We knew it was going to be a close race. Credit to him, he finished strong, and that’s the way he won the race.”
Peaty broke van der Burgh’s 2012 world mark earlier this year to become the first man in history under 58 seconds in the event. “There’s only one more tick box and hopefully I’m ready for that next year,” said Peaty, who is aiming for his first Olympics next summer in Rio de Janeiro.
This is the first time Britain has a world champion in the event since David Wilkie won both the 100 and 200 breaststroke titles at the 1975 championships in Cali, Colombia.
Peaty added the world crown to his Commonwealth Games victory in Glasgow last year, when he also beat Van der Burgh.
Earlier, in the men’s 200 freestyle heat, China’s Sun Yang and Britain’s James Guy qualified fastest, the morning after winning gold and silver respectively in the 400 freestyle. Sun posted 1:46.00, while Ryan Lochte, the 30-year-old American, also secured a semifinal berth, qualifying 13th quickest.
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