The Hindu : Sport / Swimming : Hackett does it again

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Aug 02, 2005

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Sport - Swimming

Hackett does it again

MONTREAL: Australian Grant Hackett ran away with an unprecedented fourth straight title in his trademark 1,500m freestyle event at the world swimming championships on Sunday.

Hackett kept alive a winning streak that began at the 1998 championships in Australia.

After repeating in 2001 and '03, he came to Montreal trying to become the first swimmer to win the same event at four straight worlds.

No one was close to him, even though Hackett appeared to tire a bit at the end of a gruelling meet.

"It's obviously an awesome feeling to achieve something like that and to be the first person in history to do it," Hackett said. "It's over. I've completed it, and it's very satisfying for me."

Hackett won swimming's version of the mile with a time of 14m 42.58s. That was eight seconds off his world record time but comfortably ahead of American Larsen Jensen.

Hackett captured his third individual gold medal, one more than Michael Phelps, to go along with a silver. He also won a bronze in the relays.

"It was feeling a bit tough out there," Hackett said. "A tough swim. It's been a big program and I'm just happy with the results I got."

Jensen out-raced David Davies for the silver in 14:47.58s, beating the British swimmer by a mere 53-hundredths of a second.

Edmistone wins

Australia's Jade Edmistone set a World Record in the women's 50m breastroke with a time of 30.45, beating the mark of 30.57 set by Britain's Zoe Baker in 2002.

Jessica Hardy of the U.S. was second, followed by Australia's Brooke Hanson.

Even though Phelps defeated Hackett in their only head-to-head meeting, the 200 free, the big Aussie was the biggest men's star in Montreal.

Phelps' last event was the preliminaries on Sunday of the 400m medley relay, an event the Americans won in the evening with their most prominent swimmer cheering from the stands.

After a disappointing seventh-place finish in the 100 free and a loss to Ian Crocker in the 100 butterfly, Phelps was left off the team that swam the final. He still got a gold, but not how he wanted.

The U.S. quartet, Aaron Peirsol, Brendan Hansen, Crocker and Jason Lezak, won the final event of the championships in 3:31.85s. Russia was second and Japan third.

The results:

Men: 50m backstroke: 1. Aristeidis Grigoriadis (Gre) 24.95s, 2. Matt Welsh (Aus), 3. Liam Tancock (Bri). 400m individual medley: 1. Laszlo Cseh (Hun) 4:09.63, 2. Luca Marin (Ita), 3. Oussama Mellouli (Tun).

1,500m freestyle: 1. Grant Hackett (Aus) 14:42.58s, 2. Larsen Jensen (U.S.), 3. David Davies (Bri).

400m medley relay: 1. United States (Aaron Peirsol, Brendan Hansen, Ian Crocker, Jason Lezak), 3:31.85s. 2. Russia (Arkady Vyatchanin, Dmitry Komornikov, Igor Marchenko, Andrey Kapralov), 3. Japan (Tomomi Morita, Kosuke Kitajima, Ryo Takayasu, Daisuke Hosokawa).

Women: 50m backstroke: 1. Jade Edmistone (Aus) 30.45s (WR; OR: 30.57, Zoe Baker, Britain, July 30, 2002), 2. Jessica Hardy (U.S.), 3. Brooke Hanson (Aus).

50m freestyle: 1. Lisbeth Lenton (Aus) 24.59, 2. Marleen Veldhuis (Ned), 3. Zhu Yingwen (Chn).

400m individual medley: 1. Katie Hoff (U.S.) 4:36.07, 2. Kirsty Coventry (Zim), 3. Kaitlin Sandeno (U.S.). — AP

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