Japan, China and Korea Prepare for World Championships in Melbourne

By Hideki Mochizuki

TOKYO, Japan, December 11. AT the recent Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, Japan seemingly ended with a fair result. The Japan National Team was formed by 22 male and 14 female, with the World Championships in Melbourne set to be 16 male and 13 female.

Although Japan rated the Asian Games as one of the most important international meets this year, some swimmers cancelled to prepare for Worlds in March. Swimmers such as Tomomi Morita, Ai Shibata, Sachiko Yamada and Hanae Ito were among them. Japan felt their loss, but still wound up tying China with 16 overall gold medals.

Here is update on three Asian swimmers to watch for at the World Championships:

Japan's Kosuke Kitajima
Kosuke Kitajima finished the 200 breaststroke in 2:12.05, to win for the second time in a row in this event. Kitajima finished the 50 breast with silver in 28.38 and the 100 in an ordinary 1:01.13 for the gold medal.

"I feel just good to have won in this. The time was not good enough, but could contribute to the team" Kitajima said right after the race. Kitajima was chosen as the captain for the entire Japanese contingent at the games, including all categories of sports.

In preparation for Beijing, Kitajima wanted to take a similar approach compared to Athens Games in 2004. In the last Asian Games in 2002, he marked his first world record in the 200 breaststroke. Actually, his win in the 200 breaststroke this year was his first major international meet win since the 2004 Athens Games. In 2005, he lost at the Japan Nationals and did not qualify for the Montreal World Championships in the event. Consequently, this last April, he could not climb the medal stands at the Japan Nationals. At Pan Pacs in Victoria, he was beaten by Brendan Hansen in both the 100 and 200 breaststroke.

Tae Hwan Park
Korea's rising star, Tae Hwan Park continued to prove his strength since Pan Pacs. Now 17 years old, Park won in three freestyle events in 200, 400 and 1500. In the 1500, especially, he became the first Asian to break 15 minutes barrier with an Asian record of 14:55.03. Also, he showed his sprint capability finishing the 100 in 50.02 obtaining a silver medal. In total, he won seven medals (3 golds, 1 silver, 3 bronze). Park started swimming at the age of five to treat his asthma. He rose to stardom in Korea last year as he broke six Korean records.

Chen Zuo
One of the Chinese that obtained the most attention was Chen Zuo, who smashed the Asian record in the men's 100 freestyle in 49.06. No Asian has broken the 49-second barrier, but now it is getting closer to happening. Chen was originally a long-distance swimmer, but changed to sprint about five years ago. Currently 24 years old, he looks to further improvement in Melbourne at the World Championships.

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