Kristof Milak Goes 1:53 To Win 200 Fly Before Returning For 50 Free Silver At Hungarian Nationals
Performance of the Week, Sponsored by Luma Lanes
Kristof Milak won the 200 fly in 1:53.88 to become the first man inside 1:54 this year on day two of the Hungarian Nationals in Debrecen.
The Olympic champion split 24.86/53.93/1:24.24 with a final 50 of 29.64 to stop the clock 1.13 secs ahead of Tamas Kenderesi who finished in 1:55.01.
Richard Marton rounded out the podium in 1:56.23.
Although more than three seconds outside his world record of 1:50.73, it guided Milak to the top of the rankings where he displaced Tokyo silver medallist Tomoru Honda and his 1:54.04 from the Japanese world trials.
Milak returned later to take silver in the 50 free in 22.19 behind Szebasztian Szabo – the only man inside 22secs in 21.99 – with Nandor Nemeth 0.01 behind Milak in 22.20.
Katinka Hosszu – who was edged into silver by 0.01 in the 200IM on the opening day – made sure she took gold in the women’s 200 fly in 2:09.38.
Blanka Berecz (2:10.54) and Zsuzsanna Jakabos (2:10.81) were next home.
Kristof Rasovsky added the men’s 1500 free to the 400 he won on Wednesday as the only man inside 15mins in 14:59.17 with Ajna Kesely mirroring her Hungarian teammate’s feat for a second win in 16:22.89
Petra Senanszky won the women’s 50 free in 25.24 ahead of Fanni Gyurinovics (25.55) and Anna Sztankovics (25.66)
Benedek Kovacs won the men’s 100 back in 54.18 with Dora Molnar claiming the women’s title in 1:00.83.
The championships represent the final opportunity for swimmers to achieve a qualification time for the World Championships in Budapest in June.
Some have already gained those standards at previous events including the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo although it is possible to oust swimmers should they perform better in Debrecen.