The Hindu : Sport / Olympic Games : Peirsol wins gold amidst high drama

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Friday, Aug 20, 2004

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Sport - Olympic Games

Peirsol wins gold amidst high drama

ATHENS, AUG. 19. Aaron Peirsol's emotions whipsawed between joy, confusion, sadness and finally relief when he reclaimed the gold medal in the Olympic 200m backstroke after initially being disqualified for what an official called an illegal turn on Thursday night.

The United States filed a protest and the ruling was overturned by FINA, the sport's governing body, about 30 minutes after the race — just before the medal ceremony was held.

"I knew I didn't do anything wrong," Peirsol said.

FINA officials said the reversal was made because the judge in Peirsol's lane provided inadequate details about the alleged violation that were `not in the working language of FINA.'

"It was a rollercoaster," Peirsol said. "I am sad for those who thought they were on the podium and were then thrown out of it after my race was made valid."

Peirsol, the world record-holder and current world champion, led most of the race and easily beat the field, touching first in one minute, 54.95 seconds. He was more than two seconds ahead of the next swimmer, Austria's Marcus Rogan, who is close friends with Peirsol.

Peirsol clutched a lane rope and held up his right index finger, thinking he had become the fifth man to sweep both backstroke events at the Olympics, after already winning gold in the 100m.

But there was a delay in putting up the official results. After several minutes, the scoreboard flashed `DSQ' beside Peirsol's name — a disqualification. The crowd gasped and then began to boo. Still standing on deck, the 21-year-old shrugged his shoulders in disbelief.

"It sounds pretty bogus to me," he said. "I think I got disqualified for crossing the lane line before people had finished, but I'm not sure." Peirsol wasn't upset with Olympic officials. "It's just an unfortunate mistake," he said. "It was just weird. One of those things that makes for a good story." Rogan wound up with silver in 1:57.35, while Romania's Razvan Florea settled for bronze (1:57.56).

"Aaron is a very honest person. I am sure he swam fairly," Rogan said. "For a moment, I thought about gold and the idea was just beautiful, but after all, it's fair like this. No medal is as beautiful as a friendship."

Fourth for Phelps

American Michael Phelps won his fourth gold medal of the Olympics in the 200m individual medley. He led all the way and finished in an Olympic record time of one minute, 57.14 seconds, lowering his own mark of 1:58.52 set in the semifinals one night earlier.

American countryman Ryan Lochte earned silver in 1:58.78. George Bovell of Trinidad and Tobago took bronze in 1:58.80.

Phelps, the world record holder and current world champion, earned his third individual gold medal in Athens. Only Mark Spitz won more than two in a single Olympics.

The 19-year-old was unsuccessful in his bid to break Spitz's record of seven golds in the 1972 Munich Games, but Phelps could still end up with eight medals.

He also has two bronze medals, giving him the largest personal haul so far of any athlete in Athens. His other golds were in the 200m butterfly, 400m individual medley and 4x200m freestyle relay.

Gymnast Aleksandr Dityatin is the only person to win eight medals at a single Olympics, earning three gold, four silver and one bronze in the boycotted 1980 Moscow Games. Eight athletes have won seven, including swimmers Spitz and Matt Biondi in 1988.

Amanda it is

American Amanda Beard won her first individual Olympic gold medal, holding off Australian Leisel Jones in the 200m breaststroke. Beard won in an Olympic record time of two minutes, 23.37 seconds — 0.23 seconds better than Jones, who was under world-record pace for the first 150m.

Jones took silver in 2:23.60. Anne Poleska of Germany earned bronze in 2:25.82.

Beard and Jones are the two fastest female breaststrokers in history. Jones owned the world record for two days in July before Beard broke it at the U.S. trials with a time of 2:22.44. The American also is the reigning world champion.

Beard earned her sixth career Olympic medal. She also won a silver in the 200m individual medley in Athens. Four years ago, she was the bronze medallist in the 200m breaststroke.

Jones earned a bronze in the 100m breaststroke at these Games.

Defending Olympic champion Agnes Kovacs of Hungary finished fifth.

Brooke Hanson of Australia, the silver medallist in the 100m breaststroke in Athens, finished eighth and last.

Gold for Henry

Jodie Henry of Australia followed a world-record swim in the semifinals by winning an Olympic gold in the 100m freestyle, holding off defending champion Inge de Bruijn and American Natalie Coughlin.

Henry finished strong and touched first in 53.84 seconds, just one day after setting a world record of 53.52 in the semis.

The 30-year-old de Bruijn, who won gold for the Netherlands four years ago, took silver this time in 54.16. Coughlin settled for bronze at 54.40.

Henry has emerged as one of the top female swimmers of the Athens Games. On Saturday, she passed American Jenny Thompson in the final leg of the 4x100 freestyle relay to give Australia the gold in world-record time. Henry swam her 100 split in 52.95. — AP

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