BERLIN, Germany, October 23. THE second evening of finals is complete at the FINA World Cup stop held in Berlin. USA's Michael Phelps and Missy Franklin both doubled tonight, with Franklin nearly pulling off a title trifecta in the process.
Men's 1500 free
France's Sebastien Rouault won the metric mile in 14:48.31, while Ukraine's Sergii Frolov finished second in 14:50.15. Manuel Schwarz placed third overall in 15:03.18. Rouault jumped to fourth in the early world rankings.
Denmark's Anders Lie Nielsen (15:03.86), Joel Ax (15:23.10), Spain's Marco Rivera (15:33.97) and Andre Biere (15:43.79) also competed in the final heat.
Financials: Rouault earned his first check with $1,500 for the distance victory, while Schwarz also was a new money winner with $500 for third-place. Frolov pushed his overall tally to $2,500.
Women's 100 free
Just a day after setting the world record in the 200 back, USA's Missy Franklin snatched another triumph with a scorching time of 52.09 in the 100 free. That swim far surpassed the previously top-ranked 52.44 set by Sarah Sjostrom in Stockholm, and gave Natalie Coughlin's American record of 51.88 a bit of a run. The swim moved Franklin to 10th all time in the event. Daniela Schreiber finished second in 52.37 to stand second in the early season rankings, while Germany's Britta Steffen checked in with a third-place 52.50 for fourth overall.
Denmark's Jeanette Ottesen (52.60), Great Britain's Fran Halsall (52.71), Australia's Angie Bainbridge (53.00), USA's Allison Schmitt (53.07) and Finland's Hanna-Maria Seppala (53.71) rounded out the championship heat.
Financials: Franklin, who will be bypassing money made from the circuit to focus on her NCAA eligibility, now has $19,250 to her credit in the winnings rankings, including her $10,000 bonus for a world record. Schreiber pushed to $3,500 in earnings, while Steffen cashed her second check of the weekend for $1,500 overall.
Men's 200 free
Germany's Paul Biedermann ripped off a 1:42.42 to capture the freestyle crown. That swim cleared his previously top-ranked 1:43.15 set in Moscow, but is well short of his world record of 1:39.37 from the Berlin stop during the techsuit era. South Africa's Chad Le Clos earned yet another medal (he's already won 10 golds in the circuit) with a 1:43.64. That bettered his season best of 1:43.80, but not good enough to leapfrog Michael Phelps' second-ranked 1:43.31. Italy's Filippo Magnini finished third overall in 1:43.74 for fourth in the rankings.
Great Britain's Ross Davenport (1:44.53), Belgium's Pieter Timmers (1:44.89), Poland's Pawel Korzeniowski (1:45.30), Italy's Gianluca Maglia (1:45.53) and Great Britain's David Carry (1:45.56) also swam in the finale.
Financials: Some of the heaviest hitters in terms of money on the circuit went toe-to-toe in this event. Biedermann's win increased his overall winnings to $9,000, while Le Clos now has $21,000 to his credit. Those are the top two tallies amongst the men. Magnini picked up his first check for $500 overall.
Women's 50 breast
Russia's Valentina Artemyeva won the sprint breast in 30.04 to move to second in the early rankings. Leisel Jones owns the top time with a 29.92 from Australia in July. Sweden's Jennie Johansson placed second in 30.12, but is third in the world with a 30.05 from the Stockholm stop. Germany's Dorothea Brandt rounded out the podium with a 30.18 to move to fourth overall.
Denmark's Rikke Moller Pedersen (30.57), Lithuania's Ruta Meilutyte (30.58), Korea's Kim Hye Jin (30.87), Belgium's Kim Janssens (31.07) and Australia's Sally Foster (31.52) also vied for the title.
Financials: Artemyeva's $1,500 for first moved her to $4,500 overall, while Johansson increased her circuit winnings to $5,500. Brandt won her first cash of the series with $500 for third-place honors.
Men's 100 breast
New Zealand's Glenn Snyders captured the title in 57.82 to move to second in the world rankings. Fabio Scozzoli is the only other man under 58 seconds with a top-ranked 57.44 from Italy in August. China's Li Xiayan took second in 58.02 to move to third overall, bettering his season best of 59.11 by more than a second. Great Britain's James Goddard earned bronze in 58.22 for fourth overall as tonight's final heat is the fastest of the year thus far.
Japan's Kazuki Otsuka (59.13), The Netherlands' Robin van Aggele (59.28), Marco Koch (59.73), Canada's Paul Kornfeld (59.73) and Canada's Michael Brown (59.80) completed the finale.
Financials: Snyders cracked $5,000 with a $1,500 for the win to move to $5,500 in overall winnings. Li picked up $1,000 for $2,500 overall, while Goddard has now earned $1,500 total.
Women's 400 IM
Japan's Izumi Kato won her fifth gold medal of the World Cup circuit with a 4:31.93 in the distance medley. She came up short of her second-ranked time of 4:31.27 set in Stockholm, but it was more than two seconds enough to beat Great Britain's Aimee Willmott (4:34.27) for the title. Austria's Jordis Steinegger took third overall in 4:34.50, battling Willmott for silver.
USA's Andrea Kropp (4:36.33), Italy's Alessia Polieri (4:43.40), Katharina Schiller (4:44.60), Great Britain's Jessica Thielmann (4:45.15) and Denmark's Katrine Holm Sorensen (4:46.30) also swam in the last heat.
Financials: Kato moved into third in on the winnings chart, nearly clearing five figures, with her winning check of $1,500. That swim pushed her overall circuit total to $9,000. Willmott ($1,000) and Steinegger ($500) are two new money winners on the circuit.
Men's 100 fly
Russia's Evgeny Korotyshkin nearly became the first man under 50 seconds this year with a winning effort of 50.04. That swim smashed the previous top time of 50.66 set by Chad Le Clos in Dubai. Korotyshkin owns the world record with a 48.48 from the techsuit era. USA's Tyler McGill earned silver with a 50.47 to move to second in the rankings, while Le Clos settled for third with a 50.97.
Australia's Geoff Huegill (51.08), Belgium's Francois Heersbrandt (51.34), Poland's Konrad Czerniak (51.62), Japan's Hidemasa Sano (51.90) and Germany's Steffen Deibler (52.47) also competed in the finale.
Financials: Korotyshkin's first-place $1,500 moved him into the top five in earnings with $7,000 overall. McGill picked up $1,000 for second to improve to $5,000 overall, while Le Clos tacked on $500 to his leading tally of $21,500.
Women's 100 back
USA's Missy Franklin captured her second title of the night with a blazing time of 56.73. That swim blew away her previously top-ranked time of 57.39 from Moscow, and moved her into striking distance of Natalie Coughlin's American record of 56.08. She also improved her position in the all time rankings from a personal-best 12th (56.92 from Worlds) to ninth overall.
Australia's Rachel Goh finished second in 56.99 to move to second in the early season rankings, and 15th in the all time rankings. Her previous best had been a 22nd-ranked 57.36. Ukraine's Daryna Zevina wound up third overall in 57.55.
Australia's Belinda Hocking (57.76), Great Britain's Elizabeth Simmonds (58.08), Russia's Anastasia Zueva (58.49), Jenny Mensing (59.47) and Great Britain's Lauren Quigley (59.76) wrapped up the championship finalists.
Financials: Franklin's total foregone earnings increased to $20,750 with a $1,500 check for first. She is well ahead of Alshammar's second-place tally of $11,500. Goh moved to $8,000 overall for the circuit with her $1,000 for second, pushing her to fourth in the women's rankings, while Zevina now has $5,500 in winnings from the circuit.
Men's 50 back
In a strong finale, five swimmers all cleared the previously top-ranked time of 24.06 set by Gerhard Zandberg during prelims. China's Cheng Feiyi won in 23.79, while Zandberg lost by the slimmest of margins with a second-place 23.80.Spain's Aschwin Wildeboer picked up bronze with a 23.83, while Christian Diener missed the podium with a fourth-place 23.99. Great Britatin's Liam Tancock finished fifth in 24.02, also under the old top-ranked mark.
Italy's Mirco Di Tora (24.27), Stefan Herbst (24.30) and Switzerland's Flori Lang (24.56) touched sixth through eighth to complete the finale.
Financials: Cheng increased his circuit winnings to $4,500, while Wildeboer moved up to $2,000 overall. Zandberg earned his first paycheck with $1,000 for second.
Women's 200 fly
Korea's Choi Hye Ra dominated the distance fly event with a winning time of 2:04.48. That swim just missed her second-ranked season best of 2:04.24 set during the Stockholm stop. Gong Jie holds the overall top-ranking with a 2:03.91, also from Stockholm.
Italy's Alessia Polieri (2:07.02) and USA's Allison Schmitt (2:07.20) battled for second with both setting season bests. Polieri bettered her 2:07.18 from August in Italy, while Schmitt smashed her 2:10.01 from prelims.
Poland's Otylia Jedrzejczak (2:07.38), Switzerland's Martina Van Berkel (2:07.43), USA's Hali Flickinger (2:08.60), Russia's Veronika Popova (2:09.01) and Franziska Hentke (2:09.53) rounded out the finale.
Financials: Choi became the latest swimmer to earn $5,000 overall during the World Cup circuit with her $1,500 first-place check. Polieri cashed her first check with $1,000, while Schmitt has earned $6,250 in winnings that will be bypassed to maintain NCAA eligibility.
Men's 200 IM
The podium placers in the event all cleared the previously top-ranked time of 1:54.38 set by Kenneth To in Australia in July. USA's Michael Phelps cruised to victory in a blazing time of 1:51.89 to move to fourth all time in the event. His previous top time had been a 14th-ranked 1:53.70. Only Ryan Lochte (1:50.08), Darian Townsend (1:51.55) and Markus Rogan (1:51.72) have been faster.
Great Britain's James Goddard claimed silver in 1:52.57, just clipping his lifetime best national record of 1:52.62 to remain seventh in the all time rankings. Japan's Hidemasa Sano earned bronze this evening in 1:54.31 for third in the early season rankings.
South Africa's Chad Le Clos (1:54.60), To (1:54.70), Japan's Yuma Kosaka (1:55.98), Portugal's Diogo Carvalho (1:57.17) and Japan's Daiya Seto (1:59.02) finished fourth through eighth.
Financials: Phelps moved into a tie for second in the overall earnings rankings with $9,000 overall in just two meets of work. Goddard improved to $2,500 overall, while Sano now has $6,000 for the circuit.
Women's 400 free
Just minutes after taking second in the 200 fly, USA's Allison Schmitt became the first woman under 4:00 in the middle distance event this year with a 3:59.71. That time beat the previous top time of 4:00.54 clocked by Federica Pellegrini in Italy in August. Denmark's Lotte Friis also cleared Pellegrini's time with a second-place 4:00.29, while USA's Chelsea Chenault took third in 4:00.85.
Australia's Angie Bainbridge (4:01.38), Russia's Elena Sokolova (4:04.14), Denmark's Mie Ostergaard Nielsen (4:06.51), Norway's Cecilie Johannessen (4:06.56) and Great Britain's Jessica Thielmann (4:11.58) picked up the rest of the championship finishes.
Financials: Schmitt's foregone winnings for the series increased to $7,750 with the win, while Chenault will also be forgoing $1,500 in earnings to protect her NCAA eligibility. Friis moved her tally to $2,500.
Men's 50 free
Russia's Sergei Fesikov topped the splash-and-dash with a time of 21.45. That swim pushed him to third in the world rankings, behind Matt Targett (21.31) and Marco Orsi (21.44). Orsi wound up second in 21.52, while Ari-Pekka Liukkonen finished third in 21.54. Liukkonen clocked a 21.46 during prelims to now stand fourth in the rankings.
Australia's Matthew Abood (21.56), Sweden's Stefan Nystrand (21.70), Germany's Steffen Deibler (21.77), Ukraine's Andrii Govorov (22.01) and USA's Tyler McGill (22.03) also vied for the sprint title.
Financials: All three money winners earned cash prizes for the first time during the circuit. Fesikov ($1,500), Orsi ($1,000) and Liukkonen ($500) split the $3,000 on offer.
Women's 200 breast
Japan's Kanako Watanabe nearly became the first woman under 2:20 this year with a sterling time of 2:20.03. That swim smashed her previously top-ranked 2:20.94 from Moscow, and moved Watanabe to for 18th in the all-time rankings. Australia's Sally Foster finished second tonight in 2:20.58, while Denmark's Rikke Moller Pedersen took third in 2:20.91 as both also cleared Watanabe's old time to move to second and third in the season rankings.
Korea's Back Su Yeon (2:21.41), USA's Andrea Kropp (2:21.53), Russia's Anastasia Chaun (2:22.33), Korea's Kim Hye Jin (2:23.44) and Italy's Lisa Fissneider (2:23.57) made up the rest of the championship heat.
Financials: Watanabe improved her circuit winnings to $3,500, while Foster now has $1,500. Pedersen also moved up to $1,500 overall with her $500 for third place.
Women's 100 IM
Great Britain's Fran Halsall kept USA's Missy Franklin from winning a third gold medal, as Halsall touched in 58.73 to win the sprint medley. That swim fell short of Halsall's all-time sixth-ranked 58.55 from Singapore, but far surpassed Theresa Michalak's top-ranked 59.30 for this season. Franklin tied Michalak for second with matching times of 59.44 for fourth in the season rankings.
Great Britain's Sophie Allen (59.67), Finland's Hanna-Maria Seppala (59.75), Canada's Erica Morningstar (1:00.77), Great Britain's Sophie Smith (1:01.13) and Lithuania's Ruta Meilutyte (1:02.47) placed fourth through eighth.
Financials: By sharing the $1,500 for second and third, Franklin increased her overall podium winnings to $11,500 to equal Therese Alshammar for the overall circuit lead. When incorporating the $10,000 world record bonus, Franklin will be turning down $21,500 in winnings. Halsall improved her tally to $3,000, while Michalak moved to $2,250.
Men's 200 back
USA's Michael Phelps doubled this evening with a 1:50.34 to win the distance dorsal. That swim demolished his top-ranked time of 1:53.24 set in Moscow, and is a lifetime best for Phelps to move to 15th in the all time rankings. Phelps' previous best had been a 1:51.40 from Melbourne back in 2004.
Poland's Radoslaw Kawecki finished second in 1:51.37, short of his eighth-ranked lifetime best of 1:49.13, while Spain's Aschwin Wildeboer placed third in 1:52.09. China's Cheng Feiyi (1:52.88) and Christian Diener (1:53.16) also cleared Phelps' previous top-ranked season best to take fourth and fifth this evening.
USA's Jacob Pebley (1:53.47), Yannick Lebherz (1:56.49) and Jan-Philip Glania (1:58.05) finished sixth through eighth.
Financials: Phelps moved to sole possession of second place in the winnings rankings with $10,500 in total. He trails only Chad Le Clos' $21,500, and moved ahead of Paul Biedermann's $9,000. Wildeboer improved his tally to $2,500, while Kawecki won his first money of the circuit with $1,000 for second place.
Women's 50 fly
Sweden's Therese Alshammar captured the sprint fly title in 25.18, missing her top-ranked effort of 25.06 from Moscow. Denmark's Jeanette Ottesen finished second in 25.50, while Germany's Dorothea Brandt wound up third in 26.35.
Great Britain's Amy Smith (26.67), Belgium's Kimberly Buys (26.71), Russia's Maria Ugolkova (26.87), Slovakia's Katarina Listopadova (26.94) and Sina Sutter (27.01) placed fourth through eighth.
Financials: Alshammar returned to the podium in the sprint fly to push her winnings to $13,000 for the circuit. In podium earnings, Alshammar now leads Missy Franklin's ($11,500). Franklin, however, still owns the overall earnings due to the $10,000 world record bonus. Ottesen moved to $1,500 overall, while Brandt cashed her second $500 check tonight for $1,000 overall.