SYDNEY, Australia, November 2. WITH the likes of Natalie Coughlin standing down for the third stop of the World Cup series, it is time to see what damage the Australians can make on an international field in Sydney. Leisel Jones did just that as she stroked a new World Cup record in the 100 breast, while her Aussie compatriots gathered most of the gold medals on offer.
Men's 100 freestyle
Eamon Sullivan opened the night on fire with the quickest time of the young year so far. He blistered the pool with a time of 47.15 that chopped .3 seconds off his previous top this season of 47.45 set at the Australian Grand Prix.
France's Alain Bernard placed second in 47.60, while Australia's Andrew Lauterstein took third in 47.89.
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Women's 200 freestyle
Libby Lenton answered with a show of her own. She finished just a second off her world record pace of 1:53.29 set here in Sydney in 2005 with a winning time of 1:54.22 this year – easily the best in the world this year.
Teammate Bronte Barratt knocked nearly a second off her previous season-best time of 1:55.91 set at the Australian Short Course Championships in August with a second-place time of 1:55.07 here at the World Cup.
Previously standing atop the world ranking this year with a 1:55.11 at the Aussie Champs in August, Kylie Palmer settled for third in 1:56.98.
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Men's 50 breaststroke
Christian Sprenger continued his march up the charts as Australia's dominant male breaststroke with a winning time of 27.12. Not only did it cut his season best down from a 27.56, it tied him with Brenton Rickard for the fastest time in the world this season.
Rickard, meanwhile, wound up with silver in 27.23, while Brazil's Felipe Lima took bronze in 27.31.
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Women's 100 breaststroke
Lethal Leisel Jones gave her world record of 1:03.85 set in Hobart in 2006 a go, but fell short with a winning effort of 1:04.37 – still the best time in the world this year. The previous top time came when she touched in 1:04.50 to win the Aussie Short Course national title in August. Her time also now stands as the World Cup record, as her previous standard of 1:04.84 had stood since the Sydney stop in 2005.
Meanwhile, Jade Edmistone cut nearly half-a-second off her season best of 1:05.67 with a second-place effort of 1:05.18, while Tarnee White ripped off a 1:05.80, just the third under the 1:06 mark this year.
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Men's 400 IM
New Zealand's Dean Kent walked into his country's chief rival, and walked away with a gold medal after cruising to victory in the 400 IM with a time of 4:11.15. That effort stands in the top three in the world this young season.
Meanwhile, the Aussies dominated the rest of the top three as Adam Lucas checked in with a second-place 4:13.72 and Leith Brodie claimed third in 4:13.83 – both times well off the season bests of 4:09.53 and 4:09.20 set earlier this year, respectively, at the Australian Short Course Championships.
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Women's 100 butterfly
Australia's Felicity Galvez easily captured the women's 100 fly gold medal with a top time of 57.63, albeit a bit slower than her season-best readout of 57.30 set at the Aussie Short Course Champs.
Ellen Gandy of Great Britain, meanwhile, touched second in 59.36, while Sweden's Sarah Sjostrom placed third in 59.47.
Galvez won going away, as she turned in 26.96, with Gandy's 50-meter mark of 27.57 her closest competition.
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Men's 100 backstroke
The United States' Randall Bal continued his mission for the $100k overall World Cup check, this time with a win in the 100 back in 50.78. That performance improved upon his season-best effort of 50.91 at the Singapore stop last weekend.
Australia's Robert Hurley touched second in 51.64, while Matt Welsh, who currently leads the world this year with a 50.71 set at the Australian Short Course Champs, took third in 51.93.
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Women's 50 backstroke
Tayliah Zimmer clocked the fastest time in the world this year as she lowered her previous best of 27.44 with a winning time of 27.31 here in Sydney.
She did so ahead of Sophie Edington's second-place effort of 27.49 and Emily Seebohm's third-place time of 27.99.
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Men's 200 butterfly
Russia's Nikolay Skvortsov posted an impressive time of 1:52.07, knocking more than a second off his top time in the world this season of 1:53.26 set at the Singapore stop last weekend.
Meanwhile, Australia's Nick D'Arcy placed second in 1:54.73, while teammate Christopher Wright took third in 1:56.50.
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Women's 800 freestyle
Australia's Kylie Palmer dominated the field in the women's 800 freestyle with a time of 8:15.96. Her nearest competition came from Japan's Yurie Yano, who placed a distant second in 8:26.14. Meanwhile, Great Britain's Joanne Jackson rounded out the top three in 8:28.16.
Palmer maintained a fairly consistent pace in the 31s throughout as she clocked splits of 59.36, 2:01.71, 3:04.38, 4:07.20, 5:09.23, 6:11.50 and 7:13.57 en route to the win. Her time, however, is her not best this year as she previously clocked an 8:14.11 at the Aussie Short Course Champs this year.
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Women's 200 IM
Australia's Stephanie Rice came out on top of the women's 200 IM with a time of 2:10.88 – just a shade off her season-best effort of 2:10.42 set at the Australian Short Course Champs. Meanwhile, Shayne Reese, who leads the world in the young season with a time of 2:09.85, placed second in 2:11.05. Denmark's Julie Hjorth-Hounsen claimed third in 2:11.60.
Rice had to use an incredible freestyle leg to overcome Reese, who led throughout the first three lengths with a 150-meter mark time of 1:39.41. Rice put together a 30.33 on the final 50, while Reese faded back with a 31.64.
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Men's 400 freestyle
Korea's Tae Hwan Park kicked it into cruise control for most of the race, surfacing with a notable effort of 3:39.99 to claim the gold medal in the middle-distance event. Park clocked splits of 53.42, 1:49.35, 2:44.80 on the way to the win. His time sits second this year only to Grant Hackett's 3:35.36 recorded at the Aussie Short Course Champs in August.
Australia's Patrick Murphy hit the wall second in 3:43.12, while teammate Nicholas Sprenger finished third in 3:45.75.
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Women's 50 freestyle
Libby Lenton picked up another gold medal, this time of the 50-meter variety, as she stalked Therese Alshammar's world record of 23.59, but came up short with a 23.98. Lenton has been closer to the global standard this year, with a time of 23.77 to win the Australian Short Course Championships.
Meanwhile, the Aussies went 1-2-3 as Alice Mills placed second in 24.73 and Sally Foster took third in 24.81.
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Men's 200 breaststroke
Christian Sprenger won another head-to-head duel with Brenton Rickard, this time at the 200-meter distance. Sprenger touched in 2:07.01 to capture a full-second victory over Rickard, who placed second in 2:08.01. South Africa's William Diering took third in 2:08.64.
Sprenger has been faster this year, with a 2:06.88 at the Australian Short Course Champs. At the meet in August, he finished second to Rickard, who clocked the fastest time in the world this year with a 2:05.41.
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Men's 100 IM
Great Britain's Liam Tancock scored a victory in the sprint medley event. Tancock closed out the race in 53.71, while Australia's Leith Brodie took second in 54.00. Brodie's teammate Adam Lucas completed the top three in 55.37.
Tancock's time sits third in the world this year, behind Brodie's 52.76 from the Australian Short Course Champs and Robin van Aggele's 53.34 set at The Netherlands Short Course Champs in June.
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Women's 200 backstroke
Great Britain made it two in a row as Elizabeth Simmonds clocked a stellar effort of 2:05.21 for the triumph. That performance put her on top of the world rankings this year, as the previous best had been Fran Adcock's 2:05.37 set at the Australian Short Course Champs in August.
Meanwhile, Meagen Nay of Australia placed second in 2:06.65, while compatriot Tay Zimmer finished third in 2:07.82. Nay's time is a season best, as her previous top time stood at 2:07.53 from the Australian Grand Prix in July. Zimmer's readout also cleared her season best of 2:08.22 set at the Aussie Short Course Champs.
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Men's 50 butterfly
Russia's Evgeny Korotyshkin staved off a hungry field in the sprint fly event with a time of 23.52. Places 2-5 each finished under the 24-second mark, as Australia's Matt Welsh (23.54) and Andrew Lauterstein (23.55) comprised the rest of the top three.
Meanwhile, Russia's Nikolay Skvortsov (23.57) and Australia's Adam Pine (23.72) each touched under 24 seconds to take fourth and fifth, respectively.
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