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ROME, Italy, August 1. ZIMBABWE's Kirsty Coventry edged out Russia's Anastasia Zueva for the world record and world title in the women's 200 back at the FINA World Championships.
Coventry stopped the clock in 2:04.81, while Zueva took silver with a 2:04.94. Both swims crushed Coventry's global mark of 2:05.24 set at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. It is the second time Zueva has finished second this week while being under the world record.
Here are the comparative splits:
Coventry (2009): 29.44, 1:00.91 (31.47), 1:32.81 (31.90), 2:04.81 (32.00)
Zueva: 30.23, 1:02.21 (31.98), 1:33.58 (31.37), 2:04.94 (31.36)
Coventry (2008): 29.62, 1:00.83 (31.21), 1:32.69 (31.86), 2:05.24 (32.55)
Elizabeth Beisel raced into third with a 2:06.39, just missing Margaret Hoelzer's American record of 2:06.09 set at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials.
Great Britain's Gemma Spofforth (2:06.66), Great Britain's Elizabeth Simmonds (2:07.98), the United States' Elizabeth Pelton (2:08.04), France's Alexianne Castel (2:08.13) and Japan's Aya Terakawa (2:08.89) completed the finale.