Pan Pacific Championships, Results: Jessica Hardy Closes Out Kanako Watanabe for 100 Breast Title

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GOLD COAST, Australia, August 22. IN an incredibly exciting finale, USA’s Jessica Hardy simply had too much in the tank to hold off a hard-charging Kanako Watanabe of Japan for gold, 1:06.74 to 1:06.78, in the 100-meter breast at Pan Pacific Championships. Hardy went out fast as she usually does with a 30.96, then withstood Watanabe’s 35.01 coming home. Both swimmers have been faster this year with Hardy actually securing a bit of an upset. Watanabe is ranked second in the world with a 1:05.88 from the Japan Open, while Hardy posted a 1:06.51 at U.S. Nationals.

That’s Team USA’s fourth win in a row in the event, with the fourth different winner as Amanda Beard (2002), Tara Kirk (2006) and Rebecca Soni (2010) are the previous U.S. winners dating back to Pennie Heyns’ 1999 win for South Africa.

USA’s Breeja Larson gave the U.S. a 1-3 in the event with a third-place 1:06.99, just off her 1:06.73 from U.S. Nationals.

Australia’s Lorna Tonks (1:07.41), Australia’s Taylor McKeown (1:07.55), Japan’s Satomi Suzuki (1:07.99), Canada’s Kierra Smith (1:08.49) and Canada’s Martha McCabe (1:08.96) wrapped up the rest of the championship heat.

A Final Results

  1 HARDY, JESSICA   27 UNITED STATES     1:06.94    1:06.74   896  
    r:+0.69  30.96      1:06.74 (35.78)
  2 WATANABE, KANAK  17 JAPAN             1:06.83    1:06.78   894  
    r:+0.79  31.77      1:06.78 (35.01)
  3 LARSON, BREEJA   22 UNITED STATES     1:07.06    1:06.99   886  
    r:+0.77  31.67      1:06.99 (35.32)
  4 TONKS, LORNA     25 AUSTRALIA         1:07.51    1:07.41   869  
    r:+0.61  31.65      1:07.41 (35.76)
  5 MCKEOWN, TAYLOR  19 AUSTRALIA         1:07.48    1:07.55   864  
    r:+0.65  32.23      1:07.55 (35.32)
  6 SUZUKI, SATOMI   23 JAPAN             1:07.59    1:07.99   847  
    r:+0.69  32.18      1:07.99 (35.81)
  7 SMITH, KIERRA    20 CANADA            1:08.64    1:08.49   829  
    r:+0.77  32.72      1:08.49 (35.77)
  8 MCCABE, MARTHA   25 CANADA            1:09.19    1:08.96   812  
             32.46      1:08.96 (36.50)

It wasn’t the same type of speed she used to get here at U.S. Nationals with a sixth-ranked 1:06.51, but USA’s Micah Lawrence had plenty enough to torch the rest of the B final with a 1:07.16. Japan’s Rie Kaneto (1:08.03) and Australia’s Sally Hunter (1:08.52) placed well behind the American in the consolation heat.

Canada’s Tera Van Beilen (1:09.02), China’s Liu Xiaoyu (1:09.89), Brazil’s Ana Carvalho (1:10.00), South Africa’s Jonker Franko (1:10.34) and Hong Kong’s Yvette Kong (1:10.75) also swam in the B final

B Final Results

  9 LAWRENCE, MICAH  24 UNITED STATES     1:07.54    1:07.16   879  
    r:+0.74  31.75      1:07.16 (35.41)
 10 KANETO, RIE      25 JAPAN             1:07.97    1:08.03   846  
    r:+0.73  32.64      1:08.03 (35.39)
 11 HUNTER, SALLY    29 AUSTRALIA         1:08.13    1:08.52   828  
    r:+0.71  32.44      1:08.52 (36.08)
 12 VAN BEILEN, TER  21 CANADA            1:09.39    1:09.02   810  
    r:+0.68  32.30      1:09.02 (36.72)
 13 LIU, XIAOYU      21 CHINA             1:09.87    1:09.89   780  
    r:+0.69  32.75      1:09.89 (37.14)
 14 CARVALHO, ANA C  23 BRAZIL            1:10.26    1:10.00   776  
    r:+0.71  32.52      1:10.00 (37.48)
 15 FRANKO, JONKER   21 SOUTH AFRICA      1:11.06    1:10.34   765  
    r:+0.74  32.95      1:10.34 (37.39)
 16 KONG, YVETTE     21 HONG KONG         1:11.13    1:10.75   752  
    r:+0.66  33.06      1:10.75 (37.69)

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