Translated material
Got caught in the middle
The main rivals of the Russians continue to churn out records
Four more world records were rewritten yesterday at the Olympic Aquatic Center. The author of the first was Kirsty Coventry from Zimbabwe, who swam the 100-meter backstroke in 58.77 seconds in the semi-finals. Japanese Kosuke Kitajima with a result of 58.91 seconds. became the Olympic champion in the 100 m breaststroke, simultaneously improving the world achievement of American Brendan Hansen two years ago by almost 0.20 seconds. The men's 4x100m freestyle relay ended fantastically. The record of the American quartet, set a day earlier in the same pool, was again adjusted and is now equal to 3.08.24 seconds, that is, minus four from the previous achievement, again set by the Americans at the Olympics in the preliminary heat. In addition, during the relay, Australian swimmer Eamon Sullivan completed the first leg in 47.24 seconds, becoming the new world record holder in the 100-meter freestyle.The only Russian participant in yesterday's finals, bronze medalist of the Sydney 2000 Olympics Roman Sludnov, did not look upset at all after the end of the competition. Just the day before, the swimmer said that the main task he sets for himself is to improve his personal record, and he accomplished this. For the first time in his career, Sludnov managed to “exchange” a minute in the 100-meter breaststroke - 59.87 seconds. However, the result he showed corresponded only to the sixth final place.
“It’s not a fact that whoever wins tomorrow’s final will have to swim in a minute,” Sludnov predicted the day before. However, the Russian’s expectations turned out to be very far from reality. Japanese Kosuke Kitajima swam in a record 58.91 seconds, now becoming a two-time Olympic champion in this distance. True, as the Japanese swimmer said later, as soon as he touched the side and turned to the scoreboard, he experienced a real shock. And not from joy, but from horror. The fact is that due to a malfunction of the equipment, the numbers 59.90 seconds were displayed there. “I thought, why so slow? Fortunately, everything was quickly corrected, and I took a deep breath,” Kitajima confessed in the press conference room. He also added that he approached these Games in ideal shape and expected to be able to set a world record. By the way, this is not the only final in which the Japanese hopes to participate. Next up will be the 200m breaststroke.
“I don’t know how I prepared for these Kitajima Games. He doesn’t speak English,” Roman Sludnov explained to reporters. As for the phenomenal results of American swimmers, in the opinion of our athlete, the US team is much better “technically” equipped. We are talking not only about ultra-modern suits for swimmers, but also about restorative drugs. “I can’t explain everything now, but the Americans have reached a completely different level in the recovery of athletes. And others too. Over the course of two days, results in the region of 59 seconds were shown three times. Four years ago in Athens this corresponded to a bronze medal. The Americans prepared incredibly well for this Olympics. But such results require a high level of training, and this level of training requires a lot of work. None of this can happen without effective recovery. Which one exactly - who will say? - Sludnov answered with a question.
After the Olympics in Athens, the Russian athlete left for the USA. He is currently studying finance at the University of Springfield and trains as part of the university team. “Yes, I train in the USA,” Roman said. - But this is not the same level; it cannot be compared with professional sports. In the US team, each athlete is trained by seven to eight specialists. What else is there to talk about? - the swimmer expressed his opinion.
Sludnov intends to devote the next few days to recovery. “I think I will swim in the medley relay. I know that the guys are counting on me, and I have no right to let them down. You need to be in shape for your next competition. The most important thing is to recover. I don't know what I'll do. Maybe I won’t go to the pool at all for two days. I’ll just get some sleep and walk around the city,” he shared his plans. True, yesterday Sludnov had no time for rest. Immediately after the finals, he began searching for a suitable wetsuit for spin player Arkady Vyatchanin. Why the athlete was puzzled by this problem was beyond explanation. But, judging by flash interviews with Russian swimmers, the “equipment” topic at the Olympics turned out to be more than relevant. Some complained that not everyone was given Speedo suits, but only two athletes and about ten other athletes. The second said that the suits from the alternative company are very fragile and quickly tear. You have to have four or five of these in reserve just in case. Still others are that water fills the suits and it’s uncomfortable to swim in them. When asked when you first tried them, the answer was standard: here in Beijing. If our guys were not lying, then we could only wonder why the main start of the season became a testing ground for experiments.
Meanwhile, the Russians’ rivals did not bother themselves with such things. Kirsty Coventry from Zimbabwe added gold in the 100-meter backstroke to yesterday's silver in the 400-meter individual medley. She also rehabilitated herself for her failed world record. Yesterday in the semi-finals, Coventry did not miss such a chance, dropping two tenths of a second from the previous world achievement of American Natalie Coughlin, dated July of this year. The scenario of the men's 4x100 m relay race would be quite suitable for a good thriller. It’s not even worth describing all the details of what happened; it’s enough to give a few facts. Australian Eamon Sullivan set a new world record in the first stage - 47.24. American Jason Lezak, who started last as part of his quartet, covered the hundred meters faster than the rest - 46.06 seconds. However, according to the existing rules, world records in relay races are recorded only at the initial stage. Nevertheless, largely thanks to Lezak, the American team managed to win relay gold. Literally in the last meters, Lezak caught up and overtook the Frenchman Alain Bernard, who had an advantage of almost two lengths. It was Lezak who kept the intrigue going for Michael Phelps. Had the Americans lost to the French, Phelps would have lost the opportunity to win eight gold medals at the Games, as he had planned.