DOHA, Qatar: With a few of America’s greatest stars deciding to remain residence, Claire Curzan and Hunter Armstrong claimed the highlight on the World Aquatics Championships on Tuesday.
Curzan received gold within the girls’s 100-meter backstroke on the Aspire Dome, whereas Armstrong adopted just some minutes later with a victory within the males’s 100 again.
The U.S. leads the swimming medal desk with 4 golds and eight medals total by means of the primary three days of competitors in Doha.
Also Tuesday, Simona Quadarella of Italy romped to a different world title within the girls’s 1,500 freestyle, Hwang Sun-woo gave South Korea its second particular person gold of the championships with a victory within the males’s 200 freestyle, and Tang Qianting of China received the ladies’s 100 breaststroke.
The 19-yr-previous Curzan, who competes on the University of Virginia, claimed the primary particular person world title of her burgeoning profession. She benefitted from the absence of reigning champion Kaylee McKeown of Australia and American stalwart Regan Smith, each of whom skipped these COVID-delayed worlds to give attention to the Paris Olympics.
Curzan received in 58.29 seconds — considerably slower than McKeown’s profitable time of 57.53 final summer time on the worlds in Fukuoka. The silver went to Australia’s Iona Anderson (59.12) and Canada’s Ingrid Wilm (59.18) grabbed the bronze.
“I can’t really believe it yet,” Curzan stated. “Really excited.”
Armstrong bounced again from a combination-up within the semifinals, the place he swam within the flawed lane, to win his race in 52.68. After settling for bronze within the 100 again on the final two world championships, the Ohio native now has a gold.
“No meet is ever going to go perfectly like you want it to,” Armstrong stated. “We just have to learn to mentally get over it.”
Armstrong held off Spain’s Hugo Gonzalez, his coaching associate at Cal. The two embraced after Gonzalez claimed the silver at 52.70. The bronze went to Greece’s Apostolos Christou at 53.36.
“It was a good race,” Armstrong stated. “That was a fight for every meter.”
The defending world champion, American Ryan Murphy, was one other star who skipped the Doha worlds. His profitable time final summer time was 52.22.
In the grueling 1,500 free, Quadarella started to drag away from the sphere across the 500-meter mark and completed practically a half-lap forward in 15:46.99.
“I tried to start slowly,” Quadarella stated, “then tried to build my speed.”
Katie Ledecky, the U.S. star who has dominated the freestyle distance races over the previous decade, had received 5 of the final six world titles within the 1,500. But she, too, determined to skip the journey to Doha.
Quadarella additionally took the 1,500 title in 2019 when Ledecky scratched due to an sickness. But the 25-yr-previous Italian should go a lot quicker to have any likelihood for gold in Paris.
Ledecky, the reigning Olympic gold medalist, received the world championship final summer time in Fukuoka at 15:26.27 — greater than 17 seconds forward of Quadarella within the runner-up spot.
Li Bingjie of China took the silver in 15:56.62, simply forward of bronze medalist Isabel Gose of Germany at 15:57.55.
Hwang pushed the tempo by means of the primary two laps earlier than American Luke Hobson grabbed the highest spot with 50 meters to go. But Hwang powered again to the entrance on the ultimate lap, holding off quick-charging Danas Rapsys to win in 1:44.75.
Rapsys, the highest qualifier out of the semifinals, settled for silver in 1:45.05. The bronze went to Hobson at 1:45.26.
The 20-yr-previous Hwang, a two-time quick course world champion, earned the most important victory of his profession within the huge pool.
“I don’t have a long-course gold medal,” Hwang stated. “But I did it today, so I’m very happy.”
Hwang’s victory got here on the heels of countryman Kim Woo-min profitable the 400 freestyle.
Hobson, a part of a scaled-again group for these world championships, gave himself a giant enhance with the Paris Olympics simply 5 months away.
“I’m super excited for this summer,” stated Hobson, a Nevada native who competes for the University of Texas. “I think that’s a promising result for what’s to come, so I can’t wait.”
Tang went out sturdy within the 100 breast and was by no means critically challenged on the return lap, profitable with a time of 1:05.27 to present China its second gold of the meet.
The silver went to Tes Schouten of the Netherlands (1:05.82) and Hong Kong’s Siobhan Haughey grabbed a shocking bronze (1:05.92).
Haughey posted the second-quick time within the 200 free semifinals lower than an hour earlier.
“I was not expecting this,” she stated. “I was just swimming the 100 breast for fun. I surprised myself.”
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AP sports activities: https://apnews.com/sports
(This story has not been edited by News18 employees and is revealed from a syndicated information company feed – Associated Press)
