Dubai: The third round of the Fina Swimming World Cup, which ended in Moscow on Sunday, gave an indication of the kind of performances in store in the fourth round of the event in Dubai later this week.
Hungarian sensation Katinka Hosszu has continued on her winning ways, picking up an amazing 10 medals including three gold, four silver and three bronze. After winning the overall World Cup last year, Hosszu has come into this year’s event in brilliant form, dominating the competition in the first two legs of the World Cup in Eindhoven and Berlin where she won a combined 10 medals, eight of them gold and broke the world record six times to set new marks in the 100m, 200m and 400m individual medley.
In Moscow, Hosszu predictably took gold in two of the events for which she holds the world record, the 200m and 400m Individual medley. She also took gold in the 200m butterfly, silver in the 200m freestyle, 800m freestyle, 50m backstroke and 100m individual medley, and bronze in the 100m backstroke, 100m butterfly and 200m backstroke.
Olympic gold medallist and 2011 World Cup title winner Chad Le Clos of South Africa added to his 2013 Swimming World Cup haul with another four medals, gold in the 100m fly, 200m butterfly, and 200m IM, and silver in the 50m butterfly, where he was pipped by countryman and sprint king Roland Schoeman. Schoeman also took gold in the 50m breaststroke and silver in the 50m freestyle.
Schoeman, who holds the world record in the short course 50m freestyle, was beaten to the wall in the 50m freestyle by Russia’s Vladimir Morozov, who also took gold in the 100m free and 100m Individual medley ahead of Australia’s Kenneth To. To, who won the overall World Cup title last year, took out the 100m breaststroke ahead of the UK’s Michael Jamieson to add to his silvers in the 100m free and 100m IM.
The Ukraine’s Daryna Zevina stamped her authority on the backstroke events, taking the 50m, 100, and 200m treble, but will be pushed hard in Dubai by the Australian contingent of Emily Seebohm and Belinda Hocking.
The Australian backstroke boys of Robert Hurley and Ashley Delaney again shared honours in all the backstroke events, with Hurley triumphing in the 50m and 100m, and Delaney turning the tables in the 200m.
Spain’s Mireia Belmonte Garcia and Melanie Costa also shared honours in the 400m and 800m events, with Belmonte Garcia touching first in the 800 with Hosszu in second, and Costa taking out the 400m ahead of Belmonte Garcia.
“With so many of the entrants for the Dubai leg of the Fina Swimming World Cup in such great form, the competition on October 17-18 is sure to be thrilling,” said Ahmed Al Falasi, President of the UAE Swimming Association and Chairman of the Organizing Committee.
“The caliber of the entries this year is fantastic, and with 41 countries represented we encourage all swimming and sports fans to come out to cheer on their home country swimming stars” he added.
The Dubai competition, which will take place on October 17-18, is the fourth leg of the eight-leg World Cup series, which commenced in August in Eindhoven in the Netherlands, before moving on the Berlin then Moscow. After Dubai the competition will move on to Doha, Singapore, and Tokyo, with the final event in Beijing on November 13-14.
