US back on crest of world swimming

BARCELONA, Spain, July 28 (AFP) - The United States are back at the summit of world swimming after turning the tables on arch-rival's Australia during the week-long world championships here.

After trailing 13-9 in golds at the 2001 world championships, the US had the final word with both their teen star Michael Phelps and men's 4x100m medley relay team clinching two more gold medals with world records.

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The final gold medal tally was 11-6 in the Americans' favour.

The US dominated on all levels and were responsible for eight of the 14 world records broken or equalled during the championship with Phelps notching up five.

After the high of Fukuoka where Ian Thorpe single-handedly broke four records, the Australians could manage only two in the Palau Sant Jordi.

Early in the campaign Matthew Welsh surprised by setting a new 50m fly world record on his way to gold followed by Leisel Jones in the 100m breaststroke heats, but it all then came to a stuttering stop.

But Australian high performance director Greg Hodge said they knew coming into the championships that it would be tough.

"We're a small nation and don't have the the depth of the US to try and cover all the events so we have to maximize what we have," he said.

"We're on a par with Sydney and the 2001 championships and were able to maintain the same level. We had 60 percent progression to semis and progression to final was 95 percent. This is important when you have a high standard of competition like this."

Of the top ten performers five were American, with Grant Hackett and Thorpe carrying the Australian team on the medals count with five each - three gold, a silver and a bronze.

Phelps, 18, was the top individual performer with five medals - gold in the 200m fly and 200m and 400m individual medley, and silver in the 100m fly and 4x200m freestyle relay.

Although the US and Australia were top on the medals table with 28 and 22 respectively to their nearest rivals Germany's eight, the powerhouses of swimming did not have it all their own way this time out.

Germany took five gold, thanks largely to the hattrick in the 400m, 800m and 1500m by Hannah Stockbauer, the top female performer.

And a total of 21 nations reached the podium, a figure never before achieved, with 10 striking gold including Japan, Spain, Poland, Finland and Belarus for the first time.

Kosuke Kitajima put Japan in the frame with a stunning breaststroke double and two world records, and Britain's Katy Sexton and James Gibson broke their country's 28-year duck.

Alexander Popov led Russia to three gold by regaining his supremacy in the 50m and 100m sprints, and taking the 4x100m freestyle relay.

Olympic champion Pieter van den Hoogenband went home from his second worlds with a fistful of silver.

Dutch teammate Inge de Bruijn came up gold in the 50m freestyle and 50m fly, and said that the experience of her 29 years meant that despite taking the year off last season she could still match the younger girls.

American Jenny Thompson proved the same and after taking two years off came back aged 30 to win five medals for the US to go top on the all-time world medals table with 14.

US teammate Natalie Coughlin had a poor championship due to ill health but fellow American Amanada Beard and Poland's Otylia Jedrzejczak took the attention in her absence.

As the countdown began for the Athens Games the Australians were getting down to work.

"I'm sure Phelps will be back in the water tomorrow training for the Olympic Games and that's what a hungry athlete is all about," said Australian head coach Scott Volkers.

"The goal of an athlete is up to him individually and we're here to help him achieve that."

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