FINA World Cup, Berlin: Mireia Belmonte Garcia Cracks 8:00 Barrier With World Record

BERLIN, Germany, August 10. THE first night of swimming at the Berlin stop of the FINA World Cup featured the seventh world record of the circuit thus far as Spain’s Mireia Belmonte Garcia obliterated the 800-meter free record.

Women’s 800 free
In an unreal showing to start the evening, Spain’s Mireia Belmonte Garcia blasted her way through the 8:00 barrier in the women’s 800-meter freestyle event with a stunning 7:59.34. That took the record right through the 8:01 and 8:00 barriers with Camille Muffat posting an 8:01.06 global standard in 2012.

That’s an unreal effort from the Spaniard, and made her $10,000 richer with the world-record bonus, and is nearly the same level of improvement at Katie Ledecky’s astounding six-second drop off the long course women’s 1500-meter freestyle world record last week at the FINA World Championships in Barcelona.

Splits
Camille Muffat 2012
57.34, 1:58.39 (1:01.05), 2:59.60 (1:01.21), 4:00.85 (1:01.25), 5:01.37 (1:00.52), 6:01.78 (1:00.41), 7:01.53 (59.75), 8:01.06 (58.53)
Mireia Belmonte Garcia 2013
28.28, 58.62 (30.34), 1:29.06 (30.44), 1:59.38 (30.32), 2:29.58 (30.20), 2:59.74 (30.16), 3:29.79 (30.05), 3:59.80 (30.01), 4:29.45 (29.65), 4:59.39 (29.94), 5:29.25 (29.86), 5:59.38 (30.13), 6:29.33 (29.95), 6:59.38 (30.05), 7:29.83 (30.45), 7:59.34 (29.51)

Belmonte Garcia started off a bit slower than Muffat’s world-record pace, but a key run of 29-second splits in the middle of the race drew her more than two seconds under the world-record pace and she held on to crush the 8:00 barrier in the event as the 800 free underwent a tremendous progression.

New Zealand’s Lauren Boyle, who had set the World Cup circuit record in Eindhoven this week with an 8:01.22, wound up taking second in 8:02.53 after initially going out under world-record pace at the 100-meter mark. Denmark’s Lotte Friis earned the bronze paycheck with a third-place 8:12.14.

USA’s Chloe Sutton (8:14.04), Germany’s Sarah Koehler (8:14.10), Australia’s Jessica Ashwood (8:19.53), Germany’s Leonie Beck (8:21.17) and Singapore’s Lynette Lim (8:34.11) collected the rest of the top eight finishes.

Men’s 400 IM
Japan’s Daiya Seto followed up his Eindhoven victory with a speedy World Cup record in the distance medley tonight. He clocked a 3:58.84 for the win, smashing his previous circuit record of 4:00.12 also from Berlin last year. His time tonight beat his Japanese record of 3:59.14 from the 2012 short course world championships, and moved him closer to Tyler Clary’s fourth-ranked 3:57.56 on the all time list.

USA’s Conor Dwyer broke the 4:00 barrier for the first time with a silver-winning effort of 3:59.90. He is now one of a handful of swimmers to ever beat the 4:00 mark, having lowered his lifetime best of 4:00.57 from the Eindhoven stop earlier this week. He already was the third-fastest American all time behind Ryan Lochte (3:55.50) and Clary (3:57.56), but moved closer to moving up those ranks as well.

Hungary’s David Verraszto turned in a 4:01.25 for third-place to round out the money winners as the rest of the heat finished well behind the top three.

Canada’s Alec Page (4:07.34), Austria’s Jakub Maly (4:08.09), Germany’s Kevin Wedel (4:09.12), Hungary’s Gergo Kis (4:14.35), Serbia’s Bogdan Knezevic (4:14.56), Germany’s Michel Ziemann (4:16.41), Austria’s Philipp Jaschke (4:19.47) and Germany’s Andreas Wiesner (4:26.53) also competed in the timed final event.

Men’s 100 free
The Sizzling Siberian Vlad Morozov took a run at his Russian record of 45.52 in the finale of the men’s 100-meter free, but came up a bit short. He’s still happy with the win as it produced another $1,500 check for the new professional swimmer, who cut short his NCAA career at USC in March to start chasing the money in the sport.

Morozov hit the wall in 45.74, well ahead of Australia’s James Magnussen. Magnussen earned silver with a time of 46.04, half-a-second off his best time of 45.60 set at the Eindhoven stop earlier this week. Meanwhile, Germany’s Steffen Deibler took home another paycheck with a third-place time of 46.20.

Australia’s Kenneth To (46.57), Germany’s Markus Deibler (47.10), The Netherlands’ Sebastiaan Verschuren (47.24), France’s Yannick Agnel (47.37) and Dimitri Colupaev (47.39) also turned in times in the championship finale.

Women’s 200 free
In a bit of a surprising finish, The Netherlands’ Femke Heemskerk overhauled Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu down the stretch of the women’s 200-meter free.

Hosszu went out blazing with a 54.56 at the 100-meter mark, under Federica Pellegrini’s world-record pace from her 1:51.17 in 2009. But, Hosszu could not maintain the speed as she faded a bit with Heemskerk overpowering her down the stretch, 1:52.25 to 1:52.32.

That’s a lifetime best for Heemskerk, beating her 1:52.42 national record from the 2010 FINA World Cup, while Hosszu matched her Hungarian record time set in Eindhoven earlier this week when she took second behind Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom (1:52.26).

Spain’s Melanie Costa Schmid raced to a Spanish record with a 1:52.52 for bronze, joining the top 10 all time in the process. Her previous record had stood at a 1:53.26 from the Eindhoven stop earlier this week.

Australia’s Emma McKeon (1:54.11), Annika Bruhn (1:56.39), Australia’s Brittany Elmslie (1:56.53), The Netherlands’ Saskia De Jonge (1:57.11) and The Netherlands’ Rieneke Terink (1:57.41) rounded out the finale.

Men’s 50 breast
The man who has been labeled #hewhocansprintanything on Twitter, Roland Schoeman, proved it again this evening with a triumphant performance in the men’s 50-meter breaststroke.

Schoeman, who has one of the best starts in the business, turned in a 25.65 to capture the sprint breaststroke title tonight. That swim beat his lifetime best of 25.86 from the Eindhoven stop earlier this week, and moved him closer to Cameron van der Burgh’s world record of 25.25 set here in Berlin in 2009.

Italy’s Fabio Scozzoli, a breaststroke specialist, picked up second-place honors in the sprint with a 25.72, while Germany’s Hendrik Feldwehr finished third in 26.37.

Ireland’s Barry Murphy (26.38), Japan’s Kosuke Kitajima (26.91), Erik Steinhagen (27.00), Slovakia’s Tomas Klobucnik (27.21) and Max Werkmeister (27.62) also vied for the sprint breaststroke title this evening.

Women’s 100 breast
Denmark’s Rikke Moller Pedersen cracked the 1:04 barrier for the first time in the women’s 100-meter breaststroke en route to a gold medal tonight.

Pedersen threw down a sizzling 33.50 back half on the way to a 1:03.74 for the first-place check in the event. That swim beat her national record of 1:04.05 set at the 2012 short course world championships, and moved her closer to Ruta Meilutyte’s European record of 1:03.52 also set at short course worlds.

Jamaica’s Alia Atkinson raced to second in 1:04.45 after initially going out in 29.89. That’s a second off her national record of 1:03.41 from Eindhoven earlier this week, but good enough to cash $1,000 for second-place honors.

Australia’s Sally Foster wrapped up the podium with a third-place time of 1:05.22. She just clipped Sweden’s Jennie Johansson (1:05.41) for the third-place money.

Caroline Ruhnau (1:05.77), Canada’s Martha McCabe (1:05.84), Sweden’s Joline Hostman (1:06.06) and Germany’s Dorothea Brandt (1:07.47) finished fifth through eighth in the championship heat.

Women’s 100 fly
Denmark’s Jeanette Ottesen Gray led wire-to-wire in the women’s 100-meter fly on the way to a first-place check for the world titlist.

Ottesen Gray checked in with a 55.94 to win the event, one of just a handful of swimmers to ever break 56 seconds in the event. She’s just half-a-second off Felicity Galvez’ World Cup circuit record of 55.46 from 2009, but continues to improve in the butterfly as she takes some time to retool her freestyle stroke.

Canada’s Katerine Savard, who has been on fire this summer with routine national-record performances, popped a second-place 56.35. That clipped her Canadian record of 56.49 from the Eindhoven stop this week, and continued her remarkable summer.

Australia’s Ellen Gandy checked in with a third-place time of 56.56, while Singapore’s Li Tao placed just outside the top three with a 57.15.

USA’s Claire Donahue (57.55), Franziska Hentke (57.92), Australia’s Emma McKeon (58.66) and Austria’s Birgit Koschischek (58.86) rounded out the finale.

Men’s 100 back
Following an unfortunate suit malfunction this morning that left half of his backside exposed to the world, and on Twitter, Australia’s Bobby Hurley bounced back this evening with a lifetime best in the 100 back.

Hurley blasted the field with a time of 50.01, surpassing the 50.18 he clocked during last year’s FINA World Cup circuit. He also moved to eighth all time in the event’s history behind Ryan Lochte’s 49.99 from way back in 2006.

Poland’s Radoslaw Kawecki checked in with a second-place time of 50.46, while Australia’s Mitch Larkin made it 1-3 for the boys from Down Under with a 50.54.

Japan’s Ryosuke Irie (50.71), USA’s David Plummer (51.20), Canada’s Russell Wood (51.77), Felix Wolf (53.51) and Brazil’s Nelson Silva Jr. (53.58) put up the rest of the times in the finale.

Women’s 50 back
Japan’s Aya Terakawa remained the woman to beat in the 50 and 100-meter backstrokes thus far on the FINA World Cup circuit with a victory in the sprint backstroke event.

Terakawa clocked a 26.06 for the win, just missing her Japanese record of 26.05 set at the Japanese Swimming Championships earlier this year. She’s looking to become just the third swimmer to ever break 26 seconds in the event.

Poland’s Aleksandra Urbanczyk finished just behind with a second-place time of 26.12, breaking her lifetime best of 26.38 from Eindhoven, while Czech’s Simona Baumrtova took a distant third in 26.55.

Australia’s Emily Seebohm (26.63), Canada’s Chantal Van Landeghem (27.01), Australia’s Meagen Nay (27.98), Sweden’s Magdalena Kuras (28.06) and Australia’s Belinda Hocking (28.37) placed fourth through eighth out of the money.

Men’s 200 fly
South Africa’s Chad Le Clos overpowered the rest of the field down the stretch en route to a winning time in the men’s 200-meter butterfly this evening.

Le Clos, who became an international start last summer in the long course 200 fly with an upset of The Legend Michael Phelps at the 2012 London Games, eased through his swim tonight before dropping a 28.12 final split on the field for the win in 1:49.90. That’s less than a second off his world record from earlier this week in Eindhoven when he earned $10,000 for a 1:49.04.

Poland’s Pawel Korzeniowski cashed a second-place check with a 1:50.43, just off his top time of 1:50.13 from 2009, while Japan’s Daiya Seto picked up his second podium of the night with a 1:50.96 for third.

USA’s Tom Shields tracked down his own American record with a fourth-place effort of 1:51.31. That performance undercut his 1:51.38 from the Eindhoven stop, which beat the previous record of 1:51.90 established by Davis Tarwater in 2011.

Russia’s Nikolay Skvortsov (1:51.47), Japan’s Takeshi Matsuda (1:53.53), Canada’s Zack Chetrat (1:53.0) and Canada’s Coleman Allen (1:55.00) also competed in the championship eight.

Women’s 200 IM
Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu, the early FINA World Cup money leader as well as 2012 female champion, posted the second-fastest time ever in the women’s 200-meter IM.

Just days after turning in a stunning world record of 2:03.20 during finals of the Eindhoven stop of the FINA World Cup, Hosszu nearly lowered the mark again tonight with a victorious 2:03.25. She split the swim 26.89, 57.87 (30.98), 1:33.92 (36.05), 2:03.25 (29.33), nearly backhalving her way to the global mark as her world record had her out at 57.58 at the 100.

Hosszu’s compatriot Zsuzsanna Jakabos turned in a 2:06.04 after initially standing fourth at the 50-meter mark. That’s a personal best, bettering her 2:06.29 from the Eindhoven stop. Australia’s Emily Seebohm tracked down third-place honors with a 2:06.95.

Hungary’s Evelyn Verrastzo (2:07.78), Spain’s Mireia Belmont Garcia (2:09.39), The Netherlands’ Wendy Van Der Zanden (2:09.71), Austria’s Lisa Zaiser (2:09.76) and Germany’s Theresa Michalak (2:09.82) placed fourth through eighth.

Men’s 400 free
Olympic gold medalist Tyler Clary turned in the fastest textile time for an American as he led a U.S. 1-2 in the men’s 400-meter freestyle finale.

Clary raced to a 3:36.86, just two seconds off Peter Vanderkaay’s American record of 3:34.81 from 2009, but is two second faster than Vanderkaay’s U.S. textile best of 3:38.44 from the 2010 short course world championships.

USA’s Conor Dywer earned a second-place paycheck with a swift 3:40.10 of his own as the NBAC swimmer continues to pile up the cash thus far on the circuit. South Africa’s Myles Brown pocketed third place with a time of 3:41.36.

The Netherlands’ Dion Dreesens (3:42.26), Ukraine’s Sergiy Frolov (3:43.11), USA’s Michael Klueh (3:43.89), Robin Backhaus (3:46.27) and Austria’s David Brandl (3:48.05) also competed in the middle distance finale.

Women’s 50 free
The Netherland’s Ranomi Kromowidjojo, who clipped the world record in the event at the Eindhoven stop with a 23.24, didn’t need nearly that same type of speed to win her second straight splash-and-dash title on the tour.

Kromowidjojo posted a 23.72 for the win, edging Denmark’s Jeanette Ottesen Gray for the first-place check. Ottesen Gray captured second-place honors with a time of 23.88, while Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom rounded out the sub-24 second swims with a third-place 23.95.

Canada’s Chantal Van Landeghem took fourth place with a 24.15, off her Canadian record of 23.85 set in Eindhoven. Germany’s Dorothea Brandt (24.25), Poland’s Aleksandra Urbanczyk (24.27), The Netherlands’ Femke Heemskerk (24.33) and USA’s Megan Romano (24.38) snared the rest of the top eight finishes.

Men’s 200 breast
Hungary’s Daniel Gyurta scorched the finale field with a World Cup circuit record in the men’s 200-meter breaststroke event.

Gyurta won by more than a second with a 2:01.37, this third fastest time ever, behind his techsuited world record of 2:00.67 from the 2009 European Short Course Championships ad his textile best of 2:01.35 from the 2012 World Short Course Championships. Gyurta owns the top five times ever in the event with his swim tonight after beating his World Cup record of 2:01.44 from Eindhoven.

Germany’s Marco Koch snagged second-place honors with a 2:02.50 as he lowered his German record of 2:02.80 from Eindhoven and tied Grigory Falko for second all time on the performers list. Great Britain’s Michael Jamieson posted a 2:03.04 for third this evening. That just missed his British record of 2:03.00 from the 2012 short course worlds.

Japan’s Daiya Seto (2:04.50), Russia’s Marat Amaltdinov (2:06.42), Slovakia’s Tomas Klobucnik (2:06.91), USA’s Chase Kalisz (2:07.70) and Canada’s Ashton Baumann (2:08.92) comprised the rest of the finale.

Men’s 100 IM
Russia’s Vlad Morozov doubled up tonight with a swift 51.13 in the men’s sprint medley event. That time crushed his previous best of 51.89 from the 2012 European Short Course Championships, and shot him to third all time in the event behind Ryan Lochte (50.71) and Peter Mankoc (50.76). He also bettered the 51.15 as the best time this year from George Bovell in Eindhoven.

Australia’s Kenneth To dropped a 51.21 to take second and trim time off his Australian record of 51.31 from Eindhoven. He still stands fifth all time though with Duje Draganja just ahead with a 51.20 from 2009. Bovell cashed another check, this time with a 51.65 for third-place honors.

Germany’s Markus Deibler (52.47), Australia’s Daniel Tranter (52.65), South Africa’s Darian Townsend (52.91), Dimitri Colupaev (52.99) and Japan’s Kosuke Kitajima (53.25) finished fourth through eighth.

Women’s 200 back
Ukraine’s Daryna Zevina turned in a special swim in the distance dorsal event as she broke the 2:01 barrier for the first time.

Zevina raced to a time of 2:00.81, leading the race wire-to-wire, as she blasted her lifetime best of 2:01.97 from the 2012 European Short Course Championships. With the time, she vaulted to second all time in the event behind only Missy Franklin’s world record of 2:00.03. She shot right through Elizabeth Simmonds’ European record of 2:00.83 from the 2011 Duel in the Pool as well.

Australia’s Belinda Hocking touched second in 2:01.89, while teammate Emily Seebohm collected third-place honors with a 2:02.97 for bronze.

Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu finished fourth in 2:03.14, while Canada’s Hilary Caldwell (2:04.18) earned fifth.

Czech’s Simona Baumrtova (2:04.21), Australia’s Meagen Nay (2:04.90) and Hungary’s Evelyn Verrastzo (2:08.14) also competed in the finale.

Men’s 50 fly
South Africa’s Roland Schoeman swept the 50s tonight with a scorcher in the men’s 50-meter fly.

After having already taken home the 50 breast crown, Schoeman ripped through the sprint fly with a 22.05 for the win. That’s an African record, besting his previous top time of 22.22 from the Eindhoven stop, and moving him to the top five all time in the event’s history.

Germany’s Steffen Deibler, the world-record holder with a 21.80 from 2009 here in Berlin, clocked a second-place 22.14, while South Africa’s Chad Le Clos took home third in 22.53.

USA’s Tom Shields (22.67), Ukraine’s Andrii Govorov (22.89), Ireland’s Barry Murphy (23.38), The Netherlands’ Mike Marissen (23.42) and Australia’s Alexander Graham (23.76) also swam for the sprint fly title this evening.

Mixed 200 medley relay
An early relay exchange between Steffen Deibler and Dorothea Brandt cost Germany the win in the mixed 200-meter medley relay to close the night.

Theresa Michalak (28.26), Hendrik Feldwehr (25.95), Steffen Deibler (21.93) and Dorothea Brandt had originally won the finale in 1:39.39, but the Deibler-Brandt takeover registered at -0.06 leading to an automatic disqualification of the squad.

That left the title in the hands of Bobby Hurley (23.73), Kenneth To (26.96), Ellen Gandy (25.84) and Emma McKeon (24.42) in 1:40.95.

Canada’s A squad of Russell Wood (24.32), Martha McCabe (30.57), Coleman Allen (22.96) and Sandrine Mainville (24.17) took second in 1:42.02, while Canada B finished third in 1:42.18. Australia B took fourth in 1:42.44.

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