3 meet records fall as world championships get off to fast start, but Park is too slow

3 meet records fall right away, but Park too slow

ROME — Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden set a meet record in the very first swimming event of the world championships Sunday, and American Ariana Kukors knocked off another mark as well — a sign of just how quick the times will be in the last hurrah for high-tech bodysuits.

Sjostrom just missed the world record in preliminaries of the 100-meter butterfly. Kukors nearly put up the fastest time ever in the 200 individual medley.

Not everyone was fast. In the first stunner of the championships, defending Olympic and world champion Park Tae-hwan of South Korea failed to advance to the final of the men’s 400 freestyle.

“I’m surprised, too,” Park said. “I couldn’t get enough rest after the Olympics. I worked hard in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 with no rest. That was the problem.”

Sjostrom was fastest in the 100 fly with a time of 56.76 seconds, beating Libby Trickett’s winning time of 57.15 at the 2007 worlds. The Swede just missed Inge de Bruijn’s world record 56.61, which seems certain to be among many marks falling at this meet.

Dana Vollmer of U.S. qualified second at 57.15 and Australian star Jess Schipper, wearing a new Adidas suit, was third at 57.17. This is the last major meet for bodysuits, which were banned by FINA beginning in 2010.

The 20-year-old Kukors, part of a youthful U.S. women’s team, led the way in prelims of the 200 individual medley at 2 minutes, 8.53 second wearing Jaked’s polyurethane suit. That was far faster than the championship record of 2:10.13, set two years ago by fellow American Katie Hoff, and also beat Julia Smit’s American record of 2:09.34.

Kukors was just eight-hundredths off Australian Stephanie Rice’s world record of 2:08.45.

Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu was next at 2:09.12, followed by Olympic gold medalists Rice (2:09.64) and Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe (2:09.90).

Germany’s Paul Biedermann posted the top time in the 400 free at 3:43.01. China’s Zhang Lin was next at 3:43.58, followed by Ous Mellouli of Tunisia at 3:43.78.

But Park, who won the 2007 world title in Melbourne and last year became South Korea’s first Olympic gold medalist in swimming, got off to a sluggish start and only managed the 12th-best time, 3:46.04. The top eight advanced to the final.

American Peter Vanderkaay got through as the fifth qualifier (3:45.40).

Another meet record fell in the men’s 50 butterfly, a non-Olympic event. South Africa’s Roland Schoeman and Spain’s Rafael Munoz both touched in 22.90, breaking Schoeman’s 4-year-old mark of 22.96. They were shy of Munoz’s world record, 22.43, set in April.

Serbia’s Milorad Cavic, who lost to Michael Phelps by one-hundredth of a second in the 100 fly at the Beijing Olympics, was third at 23.04. Australia’s Andrew Lauterstein was fifth-fastest (23.10), but Americans Tyler McGill and Matt Grevers failed to advance to the evening semifinals.

Schipper was pleased with her time in the fly, especially in a new suit.

“This is the first time I’ve worn this suit in a race, so I’m very happy with it,” she said. “That’s my fastest heat. Hopefully it will keep going the right way.”

Trickett skipped the worlds, but there’s still plenty of competition at the Foro Italico.

“Everyone seems to be swimming quite fast,” Schipper said. “It will definitely be an interesting final.”

Vollmer, one of the senior members of a young American women’s team, got her meet off to a solid start.

“I always liked getting that first event over with,” she said. “I think I’m more nervous for the first event of the meet than the rest of it. It was a best swim for me, so to start off like that, I know there’s a lot more I can improve on.”