By Stephen J. Thomas
ATHENS, August 21. THE USA added two new world records to the books in the final men's event of the Olympic swimming program tonight.
The team of Aaron Peirsol, Brendan Hansen, Ian Crocker and Jason Lezak lowered the time this same foursome set in Barcelona last year at the World Champs by 1.26 seconds, stopping the clock in 3:30.68.
Interestingly, every member of the team swam faster than he had in Barcelona.
It was Aaron Peirsol who got the team off to a record start! Peirsol missed the world record in Barcelona last year by just one-hundredth of a second. Tonight, perhaps fired up by the controversy surrounding his DQ, then reinstatement as the winner of the 200m back final two nights ago, Peirsol smashed the old mark set by his teammate Lenny Krayzelburg at the ’99 Pan Pacs in Sydney. His 53.45 second effort sliced 15-hundredths of a second off Krayzelburg's five year-old standard and got the Americans off to a winning lead.
Hansen followed with a 59.37 breaststroke split, versus 59.61 a year ago.
Crocker then uncorked history's fastest 100 fly split, a jaw-dropping 50.28 — 11-hundredths better than his 50.39 from '03, which was, at the time, the #1 split of all time.
Finally, Jason Lezak brought it home in 47.58 seconds, 15-hundredths faster than last year.
Germany was second tonight in 3:33.62, 11-hundredths under the old Olympic record set by the USA in Sydney. Japan was third in 3:35.22 just holding out the fast finishing Russian team anchored by sprint legend Alex Popov, who made up more than one and a half seconds but fell short of a medal in his last Olympic final. In the end there was no medal ceremony, no press conference to send off one of the great swimmers of this era.
Japan's Kosuke Kitajima clocked 59.35 to record the fastest breaststroke split. Germany's Lars Conrad anchored in 49.46, the fastest freestyle split.
Ian Crocker said of the experience, "I was in the ready room. I turned my head to the right, I turned my head to the left, and I had the two record holders in the 100m butterfly and 100m breaststroke. The adrenaline level was so high, because I was going out there with these three other guys."
And on getting the relay spot handed to him by Michael Phelps. "It seemed like a gift too big to accept, but I'm really happy the way it ended up. I didn't want to do it at first, I felt like I hadn't earned it," Crocker explined.
Men 4 x 100m Medley Relay Finals
Record Splits NOC Location Date
WR 3:31.54 53.71 1:53.32 2:43.71 3:31.54 USA Barcelona (ESP) 27 JUL 2003
OR 3:33.73 53.87 1:53.71 2:45.81 3:33.73 USA Sydney (AUS) 23 SEP 2000
Final Event No: 32
Rank Lane NOC Name R.T. 50m 100m Time Time
Behind
1 4 USA 3:30.68 WR
PEIRSOL Aaron 0.66 26.02 (WR) 53.45 (1) 53.45
HANSEN Brendan 0.28 27.83 59.37 (1) 1:52.82
CROCKER Ian 0.04 23.05 50.28 (1) 2:43.10
LEZAK Jason 0.07 22.26 47.58 (1) 3:30.68
2 5 GER 3:33.62 2.94 EU
DRIESEN Steffen 0.72 26.66 54.26 (3) 54.26
KRUPPA Jens 0.28 27.67 1:00.50 (3) 1:54.76
RUPPRATH Thomas 0.13 23.37 51.40 (3) 2:46.16
CONRAD Lars 0.25 22.37 47.46 (2) 3:33.62
3 6 JPN 3:35.22 4.54 AS
MORITA Tomomi 0.54 26.63 54.25 (2) 54.25
KITAJIMA Kosuke 0.28 27.87 59.35 (2) 1:53.60
YAMAMOTO Takashi 0.13 24.13 51.87 (2) 2:45.47
OKUMURA Yoshihiro 0.28 23.89 49.75 (3) 3:35.22
4 1 RUS 3:35.91 5.23
VYATCHANIN Arkady 0.83 27.11 55.15 (5) 55.15
SLUDNOV Roman 0.31 28.13 1:01.00 (7) 1:56.15
MARCHENKO Igor 0.17 23.79 51.74 (4) 2:47.89
POPOV Alexander 0.26 22.65 48.02 (4) 3:35.91
5 7 FRA 3:36.57 5.89
DUFOUR Simon 0.66 27.04 55.74 (7) 55.74
DUBOSCQ Hugues 0.19 27.67 1:00.07 (5) 1:55.81
ESPOSITO Franck 0.18 24.09 52.22 (6) 2:48.03
BOUSQUET Frederick 0.17 23.05 48.54 (5) 3:36.57
6 8 UKR 3:36.87 6.19
ILLICHOV Pavlo 0.75 27.15 56.19 (8) 56.19
LISOGOR Oleg 0.25 28.33 1:00.99 (8) 1:57.18
SERDINOV Andriy 0.25 23.48 50.80 (5) 2:47.98
YEGOSHIN Yuriy 0.18 23.16 48.89 (6) 3:36.87
7 2 HUN 3:37.46 6.78
CSEH Laszlo 0.66 26.75 54.89 (4) 54.89
BODOR Richard 0.10 28.02 1:00.25 (4) 1:55.14
GASPAR Zsolt 0.22 24.27 53.32 (7) 2:48.46
ZUBOR Attila 0.31 23.35 49.00 (7) 3:37.46
8 3 GBR 3:37.77 7.09
TAIT Gregor 0.65 26.82 55.69 (6) 55.69
GIBSON James 0.08 27.46 1:00.30 (6) 1:55.99
HICKMAN James 0.05 24.17 52.64 (8) 2:48.63
KIDD Matthew 0.15 22.72 49.14 (8) 3:37.77