The Week That Was: Dominant Swimming Across The World Continues Olympic Year Push

Photo Courtesy: R-Sport / MIA Rossiya Segodnya

This week saw some fast swimming across the globe as stars continued to make their push toward Rio and the 2016 Olympic Games. Read about some of the top swims from this week and more below in Swimming World’s The Week That Was!

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The Week That Was #5 – Christian Sprenger Announces Retirement

Photo Courtesy: Joao Marc Bosch

Australian breaststroke ace Christian Sprenger announced his retirement last week following the aftermath of a 2014 shoulder surgery that has hampered his attempted return to form. The 30-year old Sprenger was long a vital piece of the Australian breaststroke scene and an integral piece to their medley relay. An Olympic silver medalist in 2012, Sprenger’s career highlight came in 2013 when he was crowned world champion in Barcelona in the 100 meter-breaststroke, touching in 58.79. Sprenger also set the world record in the 200 meter-breaststroke at the 2009 World Championships in Rome that broke Kosuke Kitajima’s mark. His time of 2:07.31 from that championship still stands as the Australian record in the event.

The Week That Was #4 – Laszlo Cseh On Fire At Geneva International Meet

Laszlo Cseh Hungary 200m Medley Men Preliminary Swimming 32nd LEN European Championships Berlin, Germany 2014 Aug.13 th - Aug. 24 th Day07 - Aug. 19 Photo Andrea Staccioli/Deepbluemedia/Insidefoto

Photo Courtesy: Andrea Staccioli Insidefoto

Laszlo Cseh had a dominant meet at the Geneva International, picking up a total of five wins over the three day meet. Four of those victories came in the first two days of the competition, as Cseh touched first in the 100 fly (52.55), 400 free (3:57.16), 50 fly (23.60), and 200 IM (2:00.00). Three of those wins (400 free, 50 fly, 200 IM) all came on the same day, showing some impressive versatility and tough racing. On the third day of the meet, Cseh grabbed the 200 meter-butterfly in 1:57.37. He also finished second in the 200 freestyle earlier in the meet in 1:50.46. Cseh is looking to set himself up for a fourth Olympic Games after a stellar 2015 that saw him capture the 200 meter-butterfly gold medal at the World Championships and become the first man to medal in the 50, 100, and 200 butterfly events at a single Worlds.

The Week That Was #3 – Mitch Larkin Grabs Wins At Victoria Open

Photo Courtesy: R-Sport / MIA Rossiya Segodnya

Mitch Larkin had an amazing meet at the Victoria Open last week, capturing four wins throughout the weekend. He started the meet off with a victory in the 50 backstroke, touching in 24.98. The next day he added two more wins, touching in 1:59.31 in the 200 IM before crushing the field by more than two seconds in the 200 backstroke (1:55.16). Larkin saved his best performance for the last day of the meet, however, as he smashed the Australian All-Comers record in the 100 backstroke when he touched in 52.85. That swim cleared American backstroke legend Aaron Piersol’s record of 52.98 from the world championships in Melbourne in 2007. The 22 year-old had a breakout year in 2015, where he grabbed gold in the 100 and 200 backstrokes in Kazan before a record-breaking 2015 World Cup tour that saw him become the first man to break 1:46 in the short-course 200 backstroke.

The Week That Was #2 – James Magnussen Returns To Competition Following Surgery

Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr

Perhaps overshadowing Mitch Larkin’s stellar showing at the Victoria Open may have been James Magnussen’s return to competition following a nine-month recovery from shoulder surgery. While his times may not make the same impact as Larkin’s, the 24 year-old’s return to competition does show steps in the right direction that should bolster the hopes of Australian Swimming as they head into this summer. Magnussen posted a 49.35 win on the first night in the 100 freestyle, which places him just behind 17 year-old phenom Kyle Chalmers, who posted a 49.30 at the South Australian Championships the day before. With Cameron McEvoy posting a 48.01 in December, there should be a close battle for the 100 freestyle spots come Australian Trials in April. Magnussen also won the 50 freestyle in 22.51.

The Week That Was #1 – Katinka Hosszu, Marco Koch, and Molly Hannis Post Fast January Swims

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

While there were many notable swims from around the world this week, three stood out among the rest, with two as January all-time bests. Those two came from the FFN Golden Tour Stop, where Hungarian Katinka Hosszu and German Marco Koch turned in two great performances in their respective best events. First, Hosszu stopped the clock in 2:08.20 to set a January best and put the rest of the swimming world on notice that her 2:06.12 world record from last summer was no fluke. That time still would have put her first in the world in 2015, two-tenths ahead of British swimmer Siobhan-Marie O’Connor and Japanese swimmer Katano Watanabe. Later in the session, Koch touched the wall in 2:09.37, which was also a January best. Both Hosszu and Koch were ranked first for 2015 in the 200 IM and 200 breaststroke, respectively. Also in Europe, American breaststroke Molly Hannis set the second-fastest January time in the 100 breaststroke at the Geneva International Meet, finishing in 1:06.47. That is also a best time for Hannis, as it clips her previous best of 1:06.60 from the Dubai stop of the World Cup. While Hosszu and Koch would already be considered favorites heading into Rio, Hannis’ time announces her presence in what is many ways an incredibly competitive but wide open 100 breaststroke field for the United States women.

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