Michael Phelps electrified the Water Cube yesterday, smashing his own 400m individual medley world record to claim the first of a possible historic eight swimming gold medals at the Beijing Games.
The American star’s performance was one of two world records recorded in the first swimming finals session of the Games.
With US President George W. Bush looking on, Phelps out-dueled Hungarian Laszlo Cseh and fellow American Ryan Lochte to win in 4 minutes, 3.84 seconds — slicing 1.41 seconds off the previous world mark of 4 minutes, 5.25 seconds he set at the US trials in June.
Phelps was unable to match Spitz’s feat in Athens four years ago, winning six golds and two bronze. But he raised expectations that he could go one better in Beijing when he won seven titles at the world championships in Melbourne last year.
To do so, he will have to swim at least 17 times over the nine days of competition as he goes for gold in five individual events and three relays.
Phelps singled out Park Tae-hwan, who triumphed in the men’s 400m freestyle to give South Korea it’s first Olympic swimming gold.
“Seeing Tae-hwan go so fast in the 400m freestyle, I can’t afford to relax,” Phelps said.
Phelps turned in a blistering opening butterfly leg, surrendered the lead to Lochte at the first backstroke turn, then regained a narrow margin heading into the breaststroke.
Lochte, swimming two lanes over, briefly edged ahead in the breaststroke, but Phelps held the advantage at every remaining turn, closing out his rivals with a majestic finishing freestyle.
Cseh, lying a close third most of the way, overtook Lochte for the silver, clocking a European record of 4 minutes, 6.16 seconds.
Australian Stephanie Rice captured gold and reclaimed the world record in the women’s 400m individual medley with a time of 4 minutes, 29.45 seconds.
Zimbabwe’s Kirsty Coventry was also under the previous world record, taking silver in 4 minutes, 29.89 seconds, while Katie Hoff, who had set the world mark of 4 minutes, 31.12 seconds at the US trials in June, settled for bronze in 4 minutes, 31.71 seconds.
Park’s time of 3 minutes, 41.86 seconds was the second-fastest 400m freestyle in history.
The 18-year-old sensation held off a fast-closing Zhang Lin of China, who exhilarated the crowd of some 17,000 by taking silver in 3 minutes, 42.44 seconds. Larsen Jensen of the US was third.
There was disappointment for Australia’s vaunted women in the 4x100m freestyle relay.
The Dutch team of Inge Dekker, Ranomi Kromowidjojo, Femke Heemskerk and Marleen Veldhuis, who set the world record winning the European title in March, claimed Olympic gold in 3 minutes, 33.76 seconds.
The US quartet of Natalie Coughlin, Lacey Nymeyer, Kara Lynn Joyce and 41-year-old Dara Torres took silver in 3 minutes, 34.33 seconds. Australia earned the bronze.
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