Australian Titmus Units WR in 400m Freestyle as Ledecky Settles for Silver

FUKUOKA, Japan (AP) — Australian Ariarne Titmus set a brand new world report on the way in which to a decisive victory within the ladies’s 400-meter freestyle on Sunday, the opening day of the world swimming championships, with silver for American Katie Ledecky and bronze for Erika Fairweather of New Zealand.

Sixteen-year-old Summer season McIntosh of Canada, the world-record holder within the occasion, completed fourth.

Regardless of it falling on the primary day, the race was seen by many as probably the most compelling matchup of the eight-day championships with 22-year-old Titmus and 26-year-old Ledecky each having held the world report earlier than McIntosh.

Titmus took the lead 100 meters into the race and by no means seemed again, profitable in 3 minutes, 55.38 seconds. Ledecky (3:58.73) rallied from behind early to get the silver, whereas Fairweather (3:59.59) gained the bronze.

McIntosh’s time in fourth was 3:59.94. She set the earlier world report of three:56.08 4 months in the past. McIntosh additionally set the world report within the 400 IM 4 months in the past in 4:25.87.

Ledecky has virtually by no means gone residence from a race on the planet championships or Olympics with lower than a gold or silver medal. She completed fifth within the 200 meters on the delayed Tokyo Olympics, her solely different lower than gold or silver efficiency.

She entered these worlds with 32 gold or silver medals within the Olympics and worlds.

The race by the three celebrity ladies overshadowed the world-record efficiency of rising French star Leon Marchand. Marchand received the 400 IM in 4:02.50 breaking the earlier mark of 4:03.84 set by American Michael Phelps in 2008. The 400 IM report was the final particular person mark held by Phelps.

Marchand is coached at Arizona State College by Bob Bowman, who can be the top coach of the American group on the worlds and in addition coached Phelps.

In contrast to the 400, Marchand’s race was by no means unsure. He assumed the lead 40 meters in and steamed residence the remainder of the way in which.

American Carson Foster (4:06.56) picked up the silver, whereas Daiya Seto of Japan (4:09.41) collected the bronze.

In different medal races on the primary day in Japan, Sam In need of Australia received the boys’s 400 in 3:40.68 with silver for Ahmed Hafnaoui of Tunisia (3:40.70) and bronze for Lukas Martens of Germany (3:42.20).

Within the 4×100 males’s freestyle relay, Australia took the gold in 3:10.16, with Italy incomes the silver (3:10.49) and the USA the bronze (3:10.81).

Within the 4×100 ladies’s freestyle relay, Australia set a world report of three:27.96 in a dominating win. America took second in 3:31.93, whereas China rounded out the rostrum with 3:32.40.

The highest three finishers in every relay robotically certified for subsequent summer time’s Paris Olympics.

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