Belmonte Garcia Takes 400 IM On Final Day Of European Champs

Spaniard Mireia Belmonte Garcia continued her run of victories picking up a win in the women’s 400 IM on the final day of competition taking the event in a time of 4:21.23. Belmonte Garcia, who was only 38 one-hundredths of a second shy of Hungarian Katinka Hosszu‘s world record, destroyed her lifetime best of 4:24.21, a time that she recorded in 2010.

After dominating pretty much every competition she has entered in 2013, Hosszu continued to be off her game in Herning earning a silver medal finishing in a time of 4:24.69. Aimee Willmott beat her British teammate and 2012 World Short Course Champion Hannah Miley out for the bronze. Willmott finished in a time of 4:25.37 while Miley recorded a 4:28.56 to finish in fourth.

Men’s 200 breaststroke

In a race that he has dominated for years Hungarian Daniel Gyurta added another victory to his long list of wins at major competitions taking the men’s 200 breaststroke in a time of 2:00.72 only five one-hundredths of a second off his 2009 world record of 2:00.67.

Gyurta swam an incredibly fast last 50 meters overtaking Olympic silver medalist of Great Britain Michael Jamieson and propelling him towards the world record.

• Gyurta (2009) – 27.74/58.46 (30.68)/1:29.33 (30.87)/2:00.67 (31.34)
• Gyurta (2013) – 27.65/58.90 (31.25)/1:30.18 (31.28)/2:00.72 (30.54)

Jamieson finished second in a time of 2:01.43 just ahead of German Marco Koch who posted a time of 2:01.62. Both Jamieson and Koch set new national records.

Jamieson crushed his own mark of 2:03.00 which he recording at the 2012 World Championships while Koch also beat his own record of 2:02.50 which he put up earlier this year.

Women’s 200 freestyle

World record holder Federica Pellegrini of Italy is back to her winning ways taking the women’s 200 freestyle in a time of 1:52.80. Pellegrini had to make up ground throughout the entire race turning at the 100 meter mark in fourth in a time of 55.86 and eventually reeled in Russian Veronika Popova.

Charlotte Bonnet of France repeated her silver medal win from the 2012 European championships finishing second in a time of 1:53.26 just ahead of her season’s best of 1:53.82. Popova faded to third finishing in a time of 1:53.62.

Men’s 100 IM

This was supposed to be a finally that was supposed to be a tightly contested battle between the top two ranked swimmers in the world, Florent Manaudou of France and Russian Vlad Morozov, but that was not meant to be as Manaudou pulled out of the meet with a shoulder injury, which resulted in an easy win for Morozov.

Morozov who has held the number one ranking in the world coming into the event having posted a 50.97 at the World Cup in Beijing took the event in a time of 51.20 over a second ahead of his fellow countryman Sergey Fesikov who finished in a time of 52.23.

Italian Stefano Pizzamiglio finished third hitting the wall in a time of 52.81.

Women’s 100 butterfly

Long course 100 butterfly world champion Sarah Sjoestroem  collected her third victory of the championships winning the women’s 100 butterfly in a time of 55.78. Sjoestroem’s time is not only a season’s best, but a lifetime best beating her time of 56.14 which she posted at the World Cup in Tokyo. She was also just off the Swedish national record of 55.53 which Therese Alshammar posted in 2010.

Jemma Lowe of Great Britain who came into the competition ranked 10th in the world with a season’s best of 57.06 shocked the crowd by beating out hometown favourite Jeanette Ottesen for the silver posting a 56.32. Ottesen, who came into the competition ranked number two in the world with a season’s best of 55.94, picked up the bronze hitting the wall in a time of 56.42.

Women’s 100 breaststroke

The assumption by many was that the women’s 100 breaststroke would be a thrilling race between world record holder Ruta Meilutyte of Lithuania and the 50 and 200 breaststroke world record holder Yuliya Efimova of Russia. The two women did not disappoint.

Efimova beat Meilutyte by six one-hundredths of a second to take the championship crown in the 50 breaststroke earlier in the meet, Meilutyte was not going to allow that to happen again. Meilutyte took the first half of the race out in a time of 29.64, three tenths ahead of Efimova and just over her world record split of 29.56.

Efimova made a charge in the final 50 meters falling just short of overtaking Meilutyte, who won the event in a time of 1:02.92, beating Efimova by four one-hundredths of a second. Efimova finished second in a lifetime best and new Russian national record time of 1:02.96 beating her own record of 1:03.02 which she put up at the World Cup in Tokyo earlier this year.

To add insult to injury Meilutyte beat Efimova’s championship record of 1:03.27 which she posted in the semi-final.

Rikke Moeller Pedersen of Denmark finished third touching in a time of 1:04.39.

Men’s 200 freestyle

The Russians, who already lead the medal standing with a total of nine (5 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze), finished with the top two spots on the podium for the second time in a row in the men’s events. Daniil Izotov and Nikita Lobintsev went one, two in the men’s 200 freestyle.

Izotov who led the race from start to finish won the event in a time of 1:41.70. Lobintsev finished second in a time of 1:42.33.

Dominik Kozma of Hungary and Italian Filippo Magnini finished tied for third with both men hitting the wall in a time of 1:43.34.

Men’s 100 backstroke

50 backstroke world champion Jeremy Stravius of France returned to the pool today taking the men’s 100 backstroke in a time of 49.74. Stravius came into the competition as the world’s top ranked swimmer having put up a 49.57, breaking the French national record last weekend in Dijon.

Vitaly Melnikov of Russia finished second in a time of 50.05 followed by Camille Lacourt of France and Christopher Walker-Hebborn of Great Britain who tied for third both recording times of 50.49.

Women’s 200 backstroke

For the third time in a row Ukrainian Daryna Zevina took home the European Short Course Championship gold in the women’s 200 backstroke.  Unable to repeat her season’s best and European record of 2:00.81 Zevina took the event in a time of 2:02.20.

Simona Baumrtova of the Czech Republic was able to hold off a late push by Katinka Hosszu to take home the silver. Baumrtova finished in a time of 2:03.06 while Hosszu finished third posting a time of 2:03.81.

Men’s 50 butterfly

Ukrainian Andriy Govorov took the 50 butterfly crown in a time of 22.36, just ahead of world record holder Steffen Deibler of Germany who recorded a 22.41.

Yauhen Tsurkin of Belarus finished third in a time of 22.45.

Women’s 50 freestyle

Ranomi Kromowidjojo of the Netherlands finished off her sweep of the women’s sprint events by winning the 50 freestyle in a time of 23.36. Kromojojo was off her world record of 23.24 and just missed the championship record of 23.32 which was posted by her fellow countrywomen Hinkelien Schreuder in 2009.

Sarah Sjoestroem finished off her impressive competition taking home the silver in a lifetime best of 23.79. Aliaksandra Herasimenia of Belarus finished third in a time of 23.83.

Men’s 4 x 50 freestyle relay

Since the start of the day the men’s 4 x 50 freestyle relay world record has been broken three times first by the Italians in the first heat of the preliminaries posting a time of 1:25.89, then by the Belgians who posted a time of 1:25.52 in the second heat of the preliminaries and then by the Russians in the final winning the event in a time of 1:23.36

• Italy (Marco Orsi/Luca Leonardi/Federico Bocchia/Federico Turrini)
• 21.28/21.41/21.20/22.00 – 1:25.89

• Belgium (Frzncois Heersbrandt/Yoris Grandjean/Pieter Timmers/Jasper Aerents)
• 21.82/21.16/21.49/21.05 – 1:25.52

• Russia (Vlad Morozov/Sergey Fesikov/Evgeny Lagunov/Nikita Konovalov)
• 20.87/20.57/21.03/20.89 – 1:23.36

The Italians finished second in a time of 1:24.37 followed by the Belgians who finished third posting a 1:24.86.

Although they are all world records the European record of 1:20.77 recorded by France in 2008 still stands.

Women’s 4 x 50 medley relay

The women’s 4 x 50 medley relay was a thrilling race between the Russians and Denmark, which was highlight by a fantastic swim by Yuliya Efimova who recorded a breaststroke split of 28.30. In the prelims the Czech Republic team and Danish team both broke the world record and in the final both the Russians and the Danes were under the record.

• Russia (Daria Ustinova/Yuliya Efimova/Svetlana Chimrova/Rozaliya Nasretdinova)
• 27.57/28.30/25.15/23.65 – 1:44.67

• Denmark (Mie Nielsen/Rikke Moeller Pedersen/Jeanette Ottesen/Pernille Blume)
• 26.47/29.73/24.59/24.02 – 1:44.81

Sweden finished third in a time of 1:46.08.

The European record of 1:42.69 set by the Netherlands in 2009 still stands.