American Michael Phelps smashed Ian Thorpe’s 200m freestyle world record to win gold at the Swimming World Championships in Melbourne on Tuesday.
Phelps left his rivals in his wash as he raced to a stunning victory in one minute 43,86 seconds, wiping 0,20 seconds off the previous record of 1:44,06 set by Australian Thorpe at the 2001 world championships in Japan.
Pieter van den Hoogenband of The Netherlands, who was second behind Thorpe in Fukuoka, had to settle for the silver medal again, touching the wall in 1:46,28.
South Korea’s Park Tae-hwan was third in 1:46,73 to add a bronze medal to the gold he won in the 400 freestyle final on Sunday.
Thorpe beat Phelps and Van den Hoogenband at the 2004 Athens Olympics in swimming’s so-called ”race of the century” but the trio never raced again because Thorpe missed the last world championships in Montreal before announcing his retirement in November.
”I did want to race [Thorpe] here, I’m a little disappointed at that,” Phelps said in a pool-side interview.
”But I was able to get there and race one of the best in Pieter.”
Phelps signalled his intention to attack Thorpe’s record from the start, racing through the first 50 in 24,47 and the 100 in 51,00.
He was more than half a second under Thorpe’s world record pace when he tumble-turned for home the last time and despite slowing on the last lap, he had enough up his sleeve to set a new mark.
”I felt awesome. I haven’t seen the splits but I did what I wanted and now the ball is rolling,” Phelps said.
”I just wanted to take it out tonight [Tuesday] and knew the biggest key was to get out after the first hundred.
”That’s all I wanted to do and try to make a step on the third 50 and by then it’s all adrenaline.”
Phelps also won gold in the 4×100 freestyle relay on Sunday and is hoping to eclipse Thorpe’s record of six gold medals at a single world championships.
He has entered eight events in preparation for his ultimate aim to try and better his compatriot Mark Spitz’s record of seven gold medals at Munich in 1972.
The 21-year-old Phelps holds the world record in four events — 200m and 400m individual medley, 200m butterfly and 200m freestyle. — Reuters