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Olympic SpecialSwimming
Leisel buries ghosts
Afp, Beijing
Australia's gold medalist Leisel Jones (L) is all smiles alongside Austria's bronze medalist Mirna Jukic after winning the women's 100m breaststroke event at the National Aquatics Center in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on Tuesday. Photo: AFPMichael Phelps joined Olympic icons Paavo Nurmi, Carl Lewis, Mark Spitz and Larysa Latynina as the only athletes to win nine summer Games gold medals with a dominant 200m freestyle triumph Tuesday.The US superstar, vying to break swimmer Spitz's record of seven golds at a single Olympics, captured his third title and third world record in as many events in Beijing as he sliced nine-tenths of a second off his own world mark with a time of 1min 42.96sec.The masterful performance from the 23-year-old inspired his teammates and signalled a US gold rush at the Water Cube.Aaron Peirsol and Natalie Coughlin both defended the 100m backstroke golds they won in Athens - Peirsol in a world-record time - as the mighty Americans took their total of swimming gold to five after 12 finals.Peirsol said Phelps's performance here was something that might surface in sport "once in a century"."The way he is attacking this meet - he isn't just winning he is destroying world records on the way," Peirsol said. "It's awesome to watch."The United States are on a roll right now, hopefully we can keep it up," he said.It was Phelps who got the star-spangled show rolling in the 200 free.After increasing his lead on every lap, Phelps led by a body length in the final 50m. He was turning around to check his time as South Korean Park Tae-Hwan touched for silver in 1:44.85 - an Asian record that was nevertheless 1.89sec adrift.American Peter Vanderkaay was third in 1:45.14."I just wanted to be out on my own, which I had done by the 100 metres mark - that was my goal," Phelps said. "I was out in open water, and I was in the outside lane, which makes it difficult for the other guys to see me."Phelps said he was wary coming home of fast-finishing Park, but the South Korean said there was simply nothing he could do."Phelps swam so fast," Park said. "It's my honor to compete with him."Phelps improved on the 200m free bronze that he won in Athens behind Australian great Ian Thorpe and Dutch star Pieter van den Hoogenband.In the four years since, Phelps had seized the world record and the world title in the event.With the gruelling 400m individual medley safely won in world record time, and a thrilling US triumph over France in the 4x100m free relay, Phelps has said the hardest part of his eight-gold quest is behind him.He was back on the blocks in the semifinals of the 200m butterfly, another event in which he holds the world record."I just wanted to win my race and set everything up for tomorrow," Phelps said after booking his place in the fly final in an Olympic record."I have an afternoon off, do some recovery and I'll probably have to reshave, get all that stuff done and set up the opportunity to have the perfect swim," added Phelps, who must swim 17 times over nine days in order to surpass Spitz.Peirsol, bidding to repeat his backstroke double from Athens, won the 100m back in a world record 52.54sec.Peirsol, who has held the record since 2004, lowered the mark of 52.89 set at the US trials in Omaha, on July 1"I was a little bit surprised, a little bit relieved, absolutely elated," Peirsol said. "It's not every day you feel that way - you never get used to it."American Matt Grevers was second while Russian Arkady Vyatchanin and Hayden Stoeckel of Australia finished in a dead heat for bronze.Coughlin, who had surrendered her 100m backstroke world record to Kirsty Coventry in the semifinals, clocked 58.96 in the final to hold off the Zimbabwean, who took silver in 59.19. American Margaret Hoelzer was third in 59.34."It hasn't really sunk in yet," Coughlin said. "When I saw the clock, I thought I had made a mistake and I only knew I had won when I saw the number one by my name."Coventry claimed her second silver medal of the Games, after her runner-up finish in the 400m medley.Hoelzer was delighted to come up ahead in a tight battle for bronze."It was a close race. The third, fourth and fifth were less than a tenth of a second apart," she said.Australian world record-holder Leisel Jones stopped the US charge with a victory in the women's 100m breaststroke.The 22-year-old, who settled for silver and bronze in the individual breaststroke events in 2004 after going in as favorite, clocked 1:05.17 to claim the gold that eluded her in Athens, with American Rebecca Soni taking silver in personal best of 1:06.73. Austria's Mirna Jukic claimed the bronze in 1:07.34."I couldn't care less about the time," Jones said. "An Olympic gold is an Olympic gold. The time, the race, none of it matters - it's all about the gold."
One of several CNG filling stations between Kanchpur Bridge and Jatrabari of the capital which BNP big shots built on the Kutubkhali canal, drastically reducing Dhaka's drainage capability. PHOTO: STAR
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