CHARTRES, France, November 22. HUNGARY's Katinka Hosszu kept up the momentum she built with a big payday as the FINA World Cup Queen by clinching a pair of continental titles tonight at the European Short Course Championships. Meanwhile, Poland's Radoslaw Kawecki shot down a championship record.
FINALS
Men's 400 free
Just a week after claiming the world record (3:32.25) in the event during the French Short Course Championships in Angers, Yannick Agnel cruised to victory in the middle-distance event with a 3:37.54. Italy's Gabriele Detti took second in 3:41.66, while Andrea Mitchell D'Arrigo earned third in 3:42.32. Tonight's swim is still close to a top-25 all time performance for Agnel, but he definitely saved up some energy for other events this week after edging Paul Biedermann's global standard of 3:32.77. Detti moved to sixth in the world this year with his swim, while D'Arrigo now stands ninth.
D'Arrigo is a diamond in the rough, who is beginning to come into his own. He recently moved to Gainesville to train, and is headed to the University of Virginia for college. He explained his move in a recent Morning Swim Show appearance.
Men's 200 back
Poland's Radoslaw Kawecki shot down the meet record in the distance dorsal with a blistering time of 1:48.51. That swim eclipsed the 1:48.62 set by Stanislav Donets at the 2009 version of the event in Turkey. Not only did Kawecki far surpass the top time in the world this year, a 1:49.69 from Yuki Shirai in Tokyo, he moved to fifth all time. His swim bettered his lifetime best, and Polish record, of 1:49.13 from 2009. Hungary's Peter Bernek clinched second-place honors with a 1:49.41, while France's Ben Stasiulius took third in 1:51.81. Bernek jumped to 11th all time in the event, battering his previous national record of 1:51.21.
Women's 200 IM
All of that World Cup racing obviously paid dividends for Hungary's Katinka Hosszu as she overhauled Great Britain's Hannah Miley down the stretch, 2:05.78 to 2:06.21, in the event. Meanwhile, Hosszu's World Cup wingwoman Zsuzsanna Jakabos overtook early leader Siobhan-Marie O'Connor, 2:06.66 to 2:08.85, for the bronze. Hosszu's time is the first sub 2:06 this year, bettering the 2:06.10 clocked by China's Ye Shiwen at the Beijing stop of the World Cup. Hosszu also cut a second off her previous top time of 2:06.78 to move to fifth all time in the event. She's just a second back of Evelyn Verraszto's Hungarian and European record of 2:04.64, while Julia Smit still owns the top time ever with a blazing 2:04.60 from the Duel in the Pool in 2009. Miley, meanwhile, cleared her national record of 2:06.70 to vault to 10th in the all time rankings with her swim.
Women's 200 fly
Hungary's Katinka Hosszu definitely built up some stamina with some wildly successful outings during her World Cup win the previous two months. Often swimming four times in a night with a bevy of title trifectas. That race training helped tonight as she doubled off her 200 IM victory with a dominating final 50 meters to win the distance fly in 2:05.78. Italy's Stefania Pirozzi had led heading into the final 50 meters, but faded to second in 2:06.09. Italy's Alessia Polieri earned third in 2:06.63. Hosszu's time this evening just missed her world-leading time of 2:05.77 set on the Moscow stop of the World Cup tour. Pirozzi moved to third in the world behind Zsuzsanna Jakabos' 2:06.06 also from Moscow, while Polieri is now fifth in the world this year.
Hosszu recently visited the Morning Swim Show to talk about the World Cup experience, as well as explain how the race training has helped prepare her for the championship season.
Men's 200 IM
Hungary kept its European title streak going at three with Laszlo Cseh crushing the field by more than a second with a 1:52.74 for the win. France's Jeremy Stravius placed second in 1:54.00, while Israel's Gal Nevo wound up third in 1:55.14. Cseh's time pushed him to second in the world this year behind only Daiya Seto's brilliant 1:52.48 from the Tokyo stop of the World Cup. He also bested his Hungarian record of 1:52.85 set at the Hungarian Short Course Championships in 2009.
Men's 50 free
France's Florent Manaudou captured the splash-and-dash continental title with a sizzling 20.70. That swim pushed him into a sixth-ranked tie all time with Duje Draganja and Stefan Nystrand, and gives France four of the top eight swimmers of all time: Amaury Leveaux (20.48), Fred Bousquet (20.52), Alain Bernard (20.63). Russia's Vlad Morozov ripped off a 20.89, short of his 20.79 from semis, while Bousquet completed the podium with a 20.97 to become just the fifth man under 21 seconds this year. George Bovell (20.82) and Anthony Ervin (20.85) posted their sub-21s on the World Cup tour earlier this year.
Women's 50 breast
Czech's Petra Chocova matched her national-record time of 30.02 from semis to win the European title this evening. Meanwhile, Denmark's Rikke Moeller Pedersen placed second in 30.25, while Ireland's Sycerika McMahon picked up the bronze in an Irish-record time of 30.34. Jessica Hardy (29.92) and Ruta Meilutyte (29.96) remained at the top of the world this year with their World Cup swims heading into the World Championships next month.
Men's 200 medley relay
France's Jeremy Stravius (23.47), Giacomo Perez Dortona (26.12), Fred Bousquet (22.58) and Florent Manaudou (20.18) won the relay title with a 1:32.35, while Russia's Vlad Morozov (23.59), Oleg Utekhin (26.50), Evgeny Korotyshkin (22.52) and Evgeny Lagunov (21.26) finished second in 1:33.87. Czech's Martin Badura (24.51), Petr Bartunek (26.70), Michal Ledl (22.97) and Tomas Plevko (21.00) touched third in 1:35.18. France's time is the fifth best in event history with Russia's 2009 European titlist foursome holding the world best with a 1:31.80.
Women's 200 freestyle relay
Denmark's Jeanette Ottesen Gray (24.34), Kelly Riber Rasmussen (24.59), Julie Levisen (24.73) and Pernille Blume (24.44) managed a touchout triumph over Finland's Emilia Pikkarainen (25.09), Lotta Nevalainen (24.29), Laura Kurki (24.21) and Hanna-Maria Seppala (24.54), 1:38.10 to 1:38.13. Belarus' Yuliya Khitraya (25.12), Aliaksandra Herasimenia (23.68), Aksana Dziamidava (25.10) and Sviatlana Khakhlova (24.49) completed the podium with a third-place 1:38.39. Denmark and Finland's timed are the eighth and ninth fastest ever in the event.
SEMIFINALS
Men's 50 free
France's Florent Manaudou (20.77) and Russia's Vlad Morozov (20.79) posted the two fastest times of the year out of the second heat. France's Fred Bousquet (21.14) and King Shark Federico Bocchia (21.27) placed third and fourth out of heat one. Poland's Konrad Czerniak (21.41), Russia's Andrey Grechin (21.44), Belgium's Pieter Timmers (21.57) and Belgium's Jasper Aerents (21.60) also made the finale. Trinidad and Tobago's George Bovell had owned the top time in the event this year with a 20.82 from the Stockholm stop of the World Cup. Manaudou moved to 11th all time with the swim, while Morozov is now 12th heading into the finale. Notably, Morozov topped the Russian record of 20.83 set by Sergey Fesikov at the Salnikov Cup in 2009.
Women's 50 breast
Czech's Petra Chocova rocketed to the top seed in the finale with a 30.02, while Denmark's Rikke Moeller Pedersen touched second in 30.39. Ireland's Sycerika McMahon (30.56) and Norway's Henriette Brekke (30.82) also cleared 31 seconds. Finland's Jenna Laukkanen (31.10), Germany's Margarethe Hummel (31.12), Czech's Martina Moravcikova (31.15) and Turkey's Dilara Buse Gunaydin (31.23) earned the other transfer spots. Chocova moved to third in the world this year, behind Jessica Hardy (29.92) and Ruta Meilutyte (29.96) swims from the World Cup tour. She also obliterated her national record of 30.88 set in 2011.
Women's 100 back
Ukraine's Daryna Zevina (57.10) and The Netherlands' Kira Toussaint (57.16) put on a show in their respective semi heats to claim the top two seeds heading into the finale. Czech's Simona Baumrtova took third in 57.25, while France's Laure Manaudou kept on rolling in her second career after coming out of retirement to make the 2012 London Games. Manaudou took fourth with a 57.85. Slovenia's Anja Carman (58.33), The Netherland's Sharon van Rouwendaal (58.38), Belgium's Kimberly Buys (58.43) and Great Britain's Lauren Quigley (58.44) completed the finale field. Australia's Rachel Goh, however, still owns the top time in the world this year with a sterling 57.02 from the World Cup. Zevina and Toussaint are now second and third this year.
Men's 100 fly
Spain's Rafael Munoz Perez will be looking for a special swim in the finale after clocking a 50.68 for the top seed out of heat 2 in semis. Russia's Evgeny Korotyshkin touched second in 51.06, while France's Romain Sassot (51.11) and Medhy Metella (51.17) placed third and fourth. Slovenia's Peter Mankoc (51.27), The Netherlands' Joeri Verlinden (51.29), Hungary's Bence Pulai (51.52) and Belarus' Yauhen Tsurkin (51.54) rounded out the top eight. Munoz Perez moved to sixth in the world this year, with Chad Le Clos having the best time with a 49.60 from the Doha stop of the World Cup.
Men's 100 breast
Ukraine's Andriy Kovalenko topped the men's 100 breast semis with a 57.96 out of heat 1, while Russia's Vyacheslav Sinkevich took a close second in 58.02 from the same semi. Italy's Fabio Scozzoli qualified third with a heat 2 win of 58.07. Portugal's Carlos Esteves Almeida (58.19), Slovenia's Damir Dugonjic (58.29), Estonia's Martti Aljand (58.36), France's Giacomo Perez Dortona (58.48) and Estonia's Martin Liivamagi (58.54) also made the finale. Kovalenko is just the fifth man under 58 seconds this year, with Cameron van der Burgh well out front with a world-leading time of 57.22 from the Doha stop of the World Cup.
Women's 100 free
Without Germany's Britta Steffen, who tore up the World Cup with regularity in the sprint frees, the finale will be missing some star power. However, France's Charlotte Bonnet led the way with a 53.04 tonight, while Russia's Veronika Popova qualified second in 53.12. Denmark's Jeanette Ottesen Gray (53.61), Finland's Hanna-Maria Seppala (53.81) and Turkey's Burcu Dolunay (53.93) also cleared 54 seconds, while Denmark's Pernille Blume (54.04), Norway's Cecilie Johannessen (54.14) and Spain's Patricia Castro Ortega (54.31) qualified sixth through eighth. Bonnet moved into a fourth-ranked tie with Li Shuyi in the world rankings this year with her swim.