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

Meet records fall right away, but Park too slow

ROME — Meet records didn’t stand a chance Sunday on the opening morning of the world swimming championships, the last hurrah for high-tech bodysuits.

Several swimmers came close to breaking world records at the Foro Italico, but one guy who didn’t go fast enough was defending world and Olympic champion Park Tae-hwan, who shockingly failed to qualify for the final of the men’s 400-meter 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.”

Meet records fell in seven of eight events, the only exception being the men’s 400 free. Ian Thorpe’s 8-year-old mark still looks rather daunting, as does his slightly faster world record set in 2002.

Everything else appears up for grabs.

Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden set a championship record in the very first event, just missing the fastest time ever in the 100 butterfly. By the end of the session, American Ariana Kukors, Italy’s Federica Pellegrini, Australia’s Brenton Rickard, South Africa’s Roland Schoeman, Spain’s Rafael Munoz, the women’s 400 free relay team from Germany, and the men’s 400 free relay team from Brazil also had taken down old championships standards, though the expected assault on the world records held off until the evening semifinals and finals.

This is the last major meet for bodysuits, which were banned by FINA beginning in 2010. Some swimmers have speculated this will be as fast as they ever go; next year, suits that provide less body coverage and buoyancy will be the norm, surely sending times back up.

The most-anticipated event on the opening day of swimming was a rematch between the U.S. and France in the men’s 400 free relay.

At last year’s Olympics, American Jason Lezak overcame a daunting deficit in the last few strokes and touched 0.08 seconds ahead of Alain Bernard, keeping Michael Phelps on track to break Mark Spitz’s record with eight gold medals.

The Americans won’t have Lezak this time — he skipped the worlds to compete in Israel. Phelps rested up for the evening final, leaving Ricky Berens, Cullen Jones, Garrett Weber-Gale and Matt Grevers to swim the prelims.

Brazil put up the best morning time, 3 minutes, 11.26 seconds, and the top seven teams all broke the championship record set by the Americans at the 2007 worlds in Melbourne (3:12.72).

But Brazilian star Cesar Cielo was realistic about his team’s chance in the finals. The French rested up their top two sprinters, Bernard and Fred Bousquet, and Cielo considers them an overwhelming favorite, even against Phelps and the Americans.

“The French this year are untouchable,” the Brazilian said. “I think there’s going to be a big gap between first and second place.”

France was second in the prelims at 3:11.38, while the U.S. managed the fourth-best time (3:11.64) even though Berens’ Jaked suit split as he climbed on the blocks.

“Right in his tushy,” Jones quipped. “We sprinters try to get them as tight as possible. He still swam his heart out. He’s a professional and he did what he had to do.”

Germany, led by Olympic champion Britta Steffen, led the women’s 400 free relay at 3:34.74. The top four all went under the previous championship record, Australia’s winning time of 3:35.48 two years ago.

The Aussies advanced to the evening final with the third-best time after Meagan Nay swam the anchor leg with a heavy heart. She learned a day earlier that her 28-year-old brother, Amos, was killed in a car wreck back in Australia.

“Obviously, everyone is devastated at the news,” said Ian Hanson, a spokesman for Swim Australia. Nay appeared on the verge of tears as she hustled past reporters without speaking.

The U.S. was seventh in the prelims, slipping into the final with one spot to spare.

Pellegrini thrilled the home crowd when she touched first in the women’s 400 free, backing off a bit in the middle of the race before posting a time of 4:01.96. She was shy of her own world record, 4:00.41 from a month ago, but did beat the championship record set by France’s Laure Manaudou at the 2007 worlds (4:02.61).

American Allison Schmitt was next (4:02.80), while Olympic champion Rebecca Adlington nearly missed out on the final. Her time of 4:05.70 was only eighth best — the last position to advance.

“At the start, I was pushing hard,” Pellegrini said. “I wanted to test out the pool. After 200 meters, I realized how fast I was going and I slowed down. Then when the American (Schmitt) came up on me, I started pushing again to make sure I got first place and lane 4 for the finals.”

“She definitely set the pace,” Schmitt said. “I just tried to keep up with her.”

Sjostrom was fastest in the 100 fly with a time of 56.76, beating Libby Trickett’s winning performance 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 to fall over the next eight days.

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.

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

Kukors, part of a youthful U.S. women’s team, led the way in the 200 individual medley at 2:08.53 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.

The 20-year-old Kukors was just eight-hundredths off Australian Stephanie Rice’s world record of 2:08.45. Not bad for someone who didn’t even qualify for this event at the U.S. trials — Kukors finished third, but got in the worlds when teammate Elizabeth Pelton scratched because of a scheduling conflict.

Olympic gold medalists Rice (2:09.64) and Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe (2:09.90) also advanced.

Germany’s Paul Biedermann posted the top time in the men’s 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. Only the top eight moved on.

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

Rickard kept up the record breaking in the 100 breaststroke, his time of 58.98 surpassing Brendan Hanson’s meet record (59.37) from 2005. American Eric Shanteau, who competed in Beijing after being diagnosed with testicular cancer, was third at 59.05, and world record holder Igor Borysik of Ukraine was only fifth at 59.34, far off the fastest time ever (58.67).

Another meet record fell in the men’s 50 butterfly, a non-Olympic event. Schoeman and 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 Grevers failed to advance to the evening semifinals.