Sarah Sjoestroem breaks European swimming medal record

Rome: On the eve of her 29th birthday, Swede Sarah Sjoestroem won the 50m freestyle in Rome on Tuesday for her 45th major championship gold medal.

Sjoestroem swam the fastest time in the event this year as she cruised to her second gold of the championships in 23.91 seconds.

Pole Katarzyna Wasick was second at 0.29sec and Valerie van Roon of the Netherlands third at 0.73.

Sjoestroem won both events at the world championships in Budapest in June.

Level with Alexander Popov

It was her 27th European long-course medal, breaking a tie with Russian Alexander Popov for most by a single swimmer.

Hungarian Kristof Milak also duplicated his double at the worlds when he opened the evening by winning the 200m butterfly. He had already collected the 100m butterfly gold in Rome.

Cruising home

The 22-year-old Milak won in 1min 52.01sec, 1.67sec outside the world record he set in Budapest but good enough to leave compatriot Richard Marton trailing in his wake, 2.77sec behind. Italian Alberto Razzetti was third.

Italian Nicolo Martinenghi improved on his world championship performance as he won the men’s breaststroke sprint in 26.33 ahead of compatriot Simone Cerasuolo with German Lucas Matzerath third.

Martinenghi was only second in the 50m in Budapest where he won the 100m, a feat he has already repeated in Rome.