Day Five of the 2019 World Masters Swimming Championships featured six relays: the men’s and women’s 200 free and 200 medley relays, as well as mixed relays for both events.
Thailand’s Natthanan Junkrajang made three separate appearances as a result, each time posting the fastest female split in the field. Clocking in at 26.42 in the women’s 200 free relay, and a 26.46 in the mixed free relay, Junkrajang exhibited resilience and consistency despite a loaded event schedule. While the meet is experiencing a drought in terms of world records, championship records are falling regularly as the championship enters its back half.
Women’s 200 Free Relay
Britain’s Kathleen Tunnicliffe (35.48), Jean Howard-Jones (42.30), Diane Maureen Ford (42.05), and Esther Iseppi (35.29) clocked a 2:35.12 for the win in the 220-239 age category, due in large part to Tunnicliffe and Howard-Jones’ ability to seize momentum early on. The two women combined forces to out-split the rest of the field by over 28 seconds in the first 100.
Peru’s Moira Parks (31.44), Aida Davis (37.28), Caroll Caillaux (33.65), and Sandra Crousse (29.18) managed to fend off a competitive Australian team for the 240-279 age group win. Showing little signs of fatigue, the women are continuing to perform despite their full event schedules the past five nights.
Cape Town’s 200-239 team of Sanderina Kruger (32.88), Kathryn Nurse (30.04), Norelle Engela (30.64), and Perry Cadiz (28.38) each did their part to post a winning time of 2:01.94. Cadiz played an important role as anchor, dropping a 28.38 to put Japan’s team out of striking distance, despite the two teams breaking fairly even at the 150.
Italy’s Daniela Deponti (29.26), Lorenza Ciantellini (31.16), Raffaela Alessandrini (32.24), and Greta Rovetta (29.25) complemented each other well, attaining a healthy advantage over Germany’s quartet for the 160-199 age division win. The women dropped a time of 2:01.91, earning top honors by nearly three seconds.
Thida Tonpongsathorn (28.70) Natthanan Junkrajang (26.42), Patarawadee Kittiya (27.67), and Rutai Santadvatana (28.24) combined efforts to cinch the win in the 120-159 age category, with Junkrajang splitting the fastest time in the field by over second. Junkrajang has consistently raked in hardware since the opening night of the meet, as she is quickly establishing her presence in Gwangju. Hailing from Thailand, the quartet posted a time of 1:51.03 for a decisive victory, bettering the rest of the field by over six seconds.
Germany’s Carina Scharf (27.53), Judith Hermeler (29.45), Olga Krysiak (29.31), and Lara Kaufmann (29.33) cinched a narrow victory in the 100-119 age division, coming up from behind to edge out their compatriots by 0.05 with a time of 1:55.62.
Men’s 200 Free Relay
Australia’s Patrick Calvin (41.96), John Cocks (36.48), Tony Goodwin (38.65), and Gerry Tucker (32.63) reset the championship record for the 320-359 age division, clocking in at 2:29.72. Britain’s combination of Guy Emerson, Tony Cherrington, Nigel John Salsbury, and Geoff Stokes was enough for the win in the 280-319 division, cruising ahead of Korea’s lineup with a time of 2:23.93.
China’s Yanmin Chen (32.31), Jiankang Shen (33.10), Shuntian Liang (30.32), and Waifang Ng (28.71) staked their claim in the 240-279 age group, as Waifang exhibited aggressive closing speed to lengthen the lead and stop the clocks at 2:04.44. Cape Town’s Calvin Maughan (24.64), Robbie Taylor (26.18), Greg Mc Leroth (25.57) and Harald Kruger (25.84) won the 200-239 division in similar fashion, surging ahead of the rest of the field with a 1:42.23.
Diego Centurion Bogado (24.83), Rolando Cubero (24.97), Julio Rey (25.69), and Alfredo Carrillo (24.59) made up the only team with three men under :25, as the Paraguay natives combined efforts to clock a 1:40.18 for the 160-199. Felipe Chiesi (24.79), Rodrigo Trivino (23.74), Felipe Maia (24.79), and Filipe Faraon (23.29) were forced to make up ground in the last half of the 120-159 race, where Faraon’s 23.29 sealed their fate to stop the clocks at 1:36.61.
Spain’s Mikel Bildosola (23.70), David Juiz Larranaga (23.85), German Zubiaur (22.87), and Mikel Deba Iborra (23.92) cinched the championship record in the 100-119 age division, slashing the previous mark while defeating Thailand’s best lineup by 1.70.
Women’s 200 Medley Relay
Kathleen Tunnicliffe (42.10), Diane Maureen Ford (48.25), Amanda Heath (38.30), and Jean Howard-Jones (42.24) of Great Britain went largely uncontested in the 280-319 age class, crashing the pads with a time of 2:50.89. Tunnicliffe, Heath, and Howard-Jones all posted the top splits in the heat in order to contribute to the decisive victory. Peru’s Caroll Caillaux (44.20), Moira Parks (42.48), Sandra Crousse (31.93), and Aida Davis (36.83) followed up with a victory in the 240-279 division, finishing with a 2:35.44 to edge out Australia’s quartet.
Japan’s Nahomi Shirata (33.01) and Tomomi Miyazono (37.99) helped their team attain an early advantage in the initial 100, giving Chihiro Saito (34.37) and Tukiko Ozawa (30.49) clean water to finish up the race. The four emerged with a winning time of 2:15.96 in the 200-239 age group. Korea’s Jisun Song (35.92), Kyung A Ryu (42.11), Kyung Won Shin (32.39), and Eunkyung Nam (30.38) took the next bracket with a final time of 2:20.80, Germany’s squad proved unable to close the gap.
Thailand’s Thida Tonpongsathorn (33.20), Natthanan Junkrajang (34.98), Patarawadee Kittiya (28.78), and Rutai Santadvatana (28.48) established their dominance in the 120-159 category with a time of 2:05.44. Junkrajang played a large role in seizing momentum, with a 50 breast split that bettered the rest of the field by nearly two seconds. Germany’s Lara Kaufmann (31.77), Judith Hermeler (34.65), Carina Scharf (30.99), and Olga Krysiak (29.58) rounded out the event with a tidy win in the 100-119 division, surging to a final time of 2:06.99.
Men’s 200 Medley Relay
Australia’s Patrick Galvin (50.01), Tony Goodwin (44.24), Gerry Tucker (35.65), and John Cocks (36.19) have quickly become staple names in the 320-359 age group, and their new championship record of 2:46.09 speaks as to why. Nigel John Salisbury (47.96), Cristian Rentsch (38.44), Tony Cherrington (50.14), and Geoff Stokes (37.11) combined forces for the 280-319 win, dropping a final time of 2:53.65.
Australia’s Graeme Armstrong (34.76), Geoff Toogood (41.96), Brett Davidson (28.22), and Michael Daly (33.10) proved lethal in the 240-279 group, possessing just enough power to edge out Hungary’s top lineup. Brazil’s Andre Caldeira (30.29), Gustavo Pinto (31.93), Newton Kaminksi (28.29), and Felipe Malburg (25.29) complemented one another enough to cinch first by a narrow margin, turning in a time of 1:55.80.
Russia’s Roman Tolstik (30.36), Pavel Buyanov (29.41), Nikolay Skvortsov (24.39), and Ilya Larionov (24.61) were the ones to chase in the 160-199 category, as they pulled ahead of the pack to go 1:48.77. David Juiz Larranaga (27.23), Zigor Diaz Mercado (31.26), Mikel Bildosola (24.87), and German Zubiaur (22.80) attained a similar commanding lead in the 120-159 race, earning top honors with a time of 1:46.16.
In true form, the classic combination of Kasipat Chograthin (26.11), Radomyos Matjiur (29.23), Siwat Matangkapong (26.47), and Prasobcha Kaewrungueang (26.05) claimed the championship title in the youngest age bracket, surging to a time of 1:47.86.
Mixed 200 Freestyle Relay
Britain’s faithful crew of Tony Cherrington (37.85), Grace Isaac (38.48), Jean Howard-Jones (44.05), and Geoff Stokes (34.67) took on the 320-359 mixed relay together, churning out a 3:17.50 for the win. Cesar Gonzalez (36.63), Myriam Quintero (38.48), Gladys Quintero De Gomez (44.05), and Federico Sicard (34.67) stole the 280-319 win with ease, gaining a nearly 17 second advantage over the rest of the pack with their final time of 2:33.83.
Sanderina Kruger (33.18) made her second appearance of the night, as the South African native led off the 240-279 winning relay with only a slight add to her mark from earlier in the meet. The gain proved no obstacle, as Norelle Engela (30.79), Mike Winfield (29.36), and Graham Du Toit (29.89) made an aggressive effort to get the team home, finishing with a time of 2:03.22. Britain’s Mike Hodgson (25.34), Lynda Coggins (30.81), Michelle Ware (27.34), and David Bryant (27.71) followed up with a time of 1:51.20 in the 200-239 age group, earning gold with relative ease.
Singapore’s team of Nei-Kuan Chia (25.43), Kelvin Yew (25.71), Cindy Ong (26.33), and Hitomi Matsuda (28.44) was one of just a handful of teams that opted to send both male sprinters the first two legs, leaving the closing speed to the women. The strategy proved more than efficient, as the four finished the race with a gold-medal-worthy time of 1:45.91.
Thailand’s Kasipat Chograthin (24.29), Siwat Matangkapong (24.60), Natthanan Junkrajang (26.46), and Rutai Santadvatana (28.12) cruised to the 120-159 age group victory. Junkrajang posted a split nearly identical to her time in the women’s 200 free relay, out-splitting the rest of the women in the field for the second time tonight.
Jens Brauns (24.73), Katarina Hanusova (28.63), Katerina Vranova (28.31), and Vojtech Patek (25.24) combined forces to nab the 100-119 championship, clocking a 1:46.91 to seal their fate.
Mixed 200 Medley Relay
Grace Isaac (1:12.74), Diane Maureen Ford (50.20), Tony Cherrington (53.32), and Geoff Stokes (43.99) all made repeat appearances in order to seize gold in the 320-359 age division, dropping splits consistent with their earlier performances to post a 3:40.25.
Hugo La Roche Largo (57.83), Cesar Gonzalez (43.45), Virgil Olano De Abuchaibe (40.58), and Myriam Quintero (37.49) were the ones to beat in the 280-319 class, as they combined efforts to make for a final time of 2:59.35. Coming down to the anchor leg, Quintero proved invaluable to the team’s winning performance, coming up from behind to crash the pads 0.68 before Korea’s A-team.
Csilla Csikany (34.70), Gabor Somlai (41.35), Csaba Toth (29.03), and Judith Baranyi (33.50) of Hungary put forth a cohesive effort to win the 240-279 age division, dropping a time of 2:18.58.
Michelle Ware (32.36), David Bryant (32.82), Mike Hodgson (26.27), and Lynda Coggins (31.07) of Britain reserved the topmost step of the podium with a time of 2:02.52, courtesy of Hodgson. Splitting 26.27 on the third leg, Hodgson made up the five second deficit while providing an ample cushion for the team’s anchor leg, leading them to victory.
Singapore pieced together a deadly lineup, as Chia Nei-Kuan (29.31), Kelvin Yew (31.81), Cindy Ong (27.72), and Hitomi Matsuda (28.88) made their final appearances of the night to win the 160-199 age division, their efforts culminating in a time of 1:57.72.
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