Hosszu and Gyurta dominate SWC Dubai opener

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  • Number one: Katinka Hosszu celebrates after breaking another world record.

    There may be swimmers from 38 different countries competing in Dubai at the ongoing FINA Swimming World Cup but opening night was all about Hungary as Katinka Hosszu and Daniel Gyurta smashed two world records to light up the meet.

    Hosszu continues to live up to her nickname “Iron Lady” as the 25-year-old Hungarian broke her fourth world record in the span of one week.

    After breaking three world records in the opening leg of the World Cup series in Doha last week, Hosszu lowered her own world record in the 200m individual medley last night at the Hamdan Sports Complex clocking 2:02.13, compared to 2:02.61 from last Wednesday in Qatar.

    It was one of four gold medals she captured yesterday as she also topped the podium in the 50m and 200m backstroke as well as the 200m freestyle.

    “It feels pretty good. The amazing part is that last year and the year before, I’d swim four races in an afternoon and I would get so tired, and I was just so happy to get on the podium in some of them. Now I’m like pretty close to the world record in all four of them, so it’s really amazing,” said an elated Hosszu.

    “I’m really happy that I can see that I’m improving and that what I’m doing is right. It’s really exciting. We have a four-year plan since London to Rio (2016 Olympics) and we are halfway there and it seems we’re doing a pretty good job. I just have to stay focused and do the same things I’m doing right now.”

    Last week in Doha, Hosszu barely missed out on the world record in the 200m freestyle as she was just 0.24 seconds shy of Federica Pellegrini’s mark of 1:51.17. Yesterday, Hosszu’s gold medal-winning effort came at a slower time of 1:52.25 but she says she’s certain she’ll own that world record sooner or later.

    “There are always other chances,” she insists.

    Meanwhile, Hosszu’s compatriot, Gyurta, shattered his five-year-old world record in the 200m breaststroke – a feat made more remarkable by the fact he had swum that record in the high-tech bodysuits that were later banned by FINA because they enhanced performance.

    Gyurta shaved 19 hundredths of a second off his mark to take home the gold in 2:00.48, ahead of Germany’s Marco Koch (silver) and Japan’s Yukihiro Takahashi (bronze).

    Netherlands’ Inge Dekker grabbed two gold, in the 100m butterfly and 50m freestyle, to make it six wins from six races so far in the World Cup series.

    South African world and Olympic champion Chad le Clos was also a double winner last night. He beat Steffen Deibler to gold in the 100m freestyle before adding a second victory in the 50m butterfly – an event he had barely made the cut for in the morning heats, where he had qualified eighth.

    Dubai’s Velimir Stjepanovic, who had won two silver medals in the opening leg in Doha last week, added a third medal to his tally by placing second in a very close 400m freestyle final, clocking 3:38.32 – just 0.1 seconds behind Australian Thomas Fraser-Holmes.

    He says he’ll go all out to try and top the podium in today’s 200m freestyle.

    Two Tunisians captured a couple of bronze medals with world and Olympic champion Oussama Mellouli completing the podium in the 400m IM and Ahmed Mathlouthi placing third in the 400m free.

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