Belmonte Records World’s Second Fastest 400 Freestyle at Spanish Championships

Mireia Belmonte took the women’s 400 freestyle at the Spanish National Championships in a time of 4:04.99. Belmonte’s time places her second in the world rankings to Katie Ledecky who is still four seconds clear of the Spaniard.

Belmonte’s time is the third fastest that she has recorded in her career.

• 2014 Spanish Championships – 4:03.84
• 2014 European Championships – 4:04.01
• 2015 Spanish Championships – 4:04.99

Melanie Costa Schmid finished second in a time of 4:07.52 which puts her eighth in the world rankings. Alice Mizzau finished second in a time of 4:12.37, nearly five seconds off her season’s best of 4:07.11.

Viktoria Zeynep Gunes destroyed the Turkish record in the women’s 200 breaststroke winning the event in a time of 2:23.47. Her time also places her third in the world rankings behind Rikke Moller Pedersen and Kanako Watanabe.

Gunes’ recorded her lifetime best of 2:23.01 at the 2013 World Championships where she finished third in the event. Up until 2013 the 16 year old represented the Ukraine, but when the country was engulfed in political strife the star athlete fled to Turkey.

Jessica Vall Montero gave Gunes a race up until the last 50 meters where the Turk out swam the Spaniard by over two seconds.

• Gunes – 33.50/1:10.27 (36.72)/1:47.33 (37.06)/2:23.47 (36.14)
• Vall Montero – 33.32/1:09.54 (36.22)/1:46.69 (37.15)/2:24.88 (38.19)

Vall Montero finished second in a time of 2:24.88 followed by Victoria Kaminskaya who hit the wall in a time of 2:31.37.

Melquiades Alvarez won the men’s event in a time of 2:13.95.

Miguel Navia Duran took the men’s 400 freestyle in a new Spanish record time of 3:49.76. The previous record of 3:49.82 was set by Marco Rivera Miranda in 2008. Marc Torrens took the silver in a time of 3:52.36 followed by Aranu Rovira Guillen who touched in a time of 3:54.51.

Yauhen Tsurkin won the men’s 50 butterfly in a time of 23.36 to take over the second place spot in the world rankings. Tsurkin sits eight one-hundredths of a second away from Cesar Cielo and one one-hundredth of a second ahead of Andrey Govorov who posted a 23.37 on the weekend.

Konrad Czerniak and Jose Canizares tied for second both touching in a time of 23.68 which puts them seventh in the world rankings.

Svenja Stoffel won the women’s event in a time of 26.71.

Mercedes Peris took the women’s 100 backstroke in a time of 1:01.00 followed by Duane Da Rocha who hit the wall in a time of 1:01.07. Laura Fernadez finished a distant third posting a time of 1:02.51.

Juan Miguel Rando took the men’s event in a time of 54.51.