The men's 200 metre breaststroke event at the 2000 Summer Olympics took place on 19–20 September at the Sydney International Aquatic Centre in Sydney, Australia.[1]
| Men's 200 metre breaststroke at the Games of the XXVII Olympiad | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | Sydney International Aquatic Centre | ||||||||||||
| Date | September 19, 2000 (heats & semifinals) September 20, 2000 (final) | ||||||||||||
| Competitors | 49 from 44 nations | ||||||||||||
| Winning time | 2:10.87 EU | ||||||||||||
| Medalists | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
Domenico Fioravanti emerged as a major force on the international swimming after effortlessly winning his second gold at these Games. He maintained a lead from start to finish and posted a European record of 2:10.87, the second-fastest of all time, making him the first ever swimmer in Olympic history to strike a breaststroke double.[2][3] South Africa's Terence Parkin, a deaf mute since birth, enjoyed the race of his life to take a silver medal in an African record of 2:12.50.[4] Fioravanti's fellowman Davide Rummolo gave Italy a further reason to celebrate, as he powered home with the bronze in 2:12.73.[5][6]
Acknowledging a massive cheer from the home crowd, Australia's Regan Harrison swam his lifetime best, but finished outside the podium by 15-hundredths of a second in 2:12.88. Czech Republic's Daniel Málek pulled off a fifth-place finish in a national record of 2:13.20, while Kyle Salyards, the only U.S. swimmer in the final, earned a sixth spot with a time of 2:13.27. France's Yohann Bernard (2:13.31) and another Aussie Ryan Mitchell (2:14.00) rounded out the finale.[5] Notable swimmers failed to reach the top 8 final, featuring Hungary's Norbert Rózsa, the defending Olympic champion, who placed thirteenth (2:14.67), and Canada's Morgan Knabe, who had the fastest 100-metre split, but faded badly on the final lap to place tenth (2:14.01).[7]
Shortly before the next Olympics, Fioravanti was forced to retire from swimming after failing a routine medical test carried by the Italian National Olympic Committee. Tests revealed that he was diagnosed with a genetic heart anomaly.[8][9]
Records edit
Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.
| World record |  Mike Barrowman (USA) |
2:10.16 | Barcelona, Spain | 29 July 1992 | [10] |
| Olympic record |  Mike Barrowman (USA) |
2:10.16 | Barcelona, Spain | 29 July 1992 | [10] |
Results edit
Heats edit
Semifinals edit
Semifinal 1 edit
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Kyle Salyards | United States |
2:13.38 | Q |
| 2 | 4 | Daniel Málek |  Czech Republic |
2:13.46 | Q, NR |
| 3 | 7 | Yohann Bernard |  France |
2:13.48 | Q |
| 4 | 2 | Terence Parkin |  South Africa |
2:13.57 | Q |
| 5 | 8 | Dmitry Komornikov |  Russia |
2:13.95 | |
| 6 | 5 | Maxim Podoprigora |  Austria |
2:14.20 | |
| 7 | 3 | Stéphan Perrot | France |
2:14.59 | |
| 8 | 6 | Martin Gustavsson |  Sweden |
2:15.23 |
Semifinal 2 edit
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Domenico Fioravanti |  Italy |
2:12.37 | Q, NR |
| 2 | 4 | Davide Rummolo | Italy |
2:13.23 | Q |
| 3 | 6 | Regan Harrison |  Australia |
2:13.75 | Q |
| 4 | 3 | Ryan Mitchell | Australia |
2:13.87 | Q |
| 5 | 5 | Morgan Knabe |  Canada |
2:14.01 | |
| 6 | 7 | Norbert Rózsa |  Hungary |
2:14.67 | |
| 7 | 1 | Akira Hayashi |  Japan |
2:15.16 | |
| 8 | 8 | Alexander Tkachev |  Kyrgyzstan |
2:16.90 |
Final edit
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
4 | Domenico Fioravanti | Italy |
2:10.87 | EU |
 |
7 | Terence Parkin | South Africa |
2:12.50 | AF |
 |
5 | Davide Rummolo | Italy |
2:12.73 | |
| 4 | 1 | Regan Harrison | Australia |
2:12.88 | OC |
| 5 | 6 | Daniel Málek | Czech Republic |
2:13.20 | NR |
| 6 | 3 | Kyle Salyards | United States |
2:13.27 | |
| 7 | 2 | Yohann Bernard | France |
2:13.31 | |
| 8 | 8 | Ryan Mitchell | Australia |
2:14.00 |
References edit
- ^ "Swimming schedule". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 14 September 2000. Retrieved 14 May 2013.
- ^ "Flying Fioravanti bags second gold". BBC Sport. 20 September 2000. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
- ^ Fitzpatrick, Frank (21 September 2000). "Misty Hops Up A Golden Mountain Hyman Tops Aussie Icon In Butterfly". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
- ^ "Deaf Parkin wins silver". News24. 20 September 2000. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
- ^ a b Whitten, Phillip (20 September 2000). "Olympic Day 5 Finals". Swimming World Magazine. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
- ^ Lonsbrough, Anita (21 September 2000). "Hyman denies Madam Butterfly a second farewell gold". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
- ^ Whitten, Phillip (19 September 2000). "Olympic Day 4 Finals". Swimming World Magazine. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
- ^ "Heart Trouble Sidelines Italian Olympic Champ". Swimming World Magazine. 7 November 2003. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
- ^ "Swim champion doubtful for Athens". CNN. 6 November 2003. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
- ^ a b c "Sydney 2000: Swimming – Men's 200m Breaststroke Heats" (PDF). Sydney 2000. LA84 Foundation. pp. 253–254. Retrieved 3 June 2013.