The USA Swimming team leads the medal count with seven total medals (4 gold, 1 silver and 2 bronze). The Swimming Competition continues Friday and runs through Sunday.
2010 Short Course World Championship Results from Omega Timing
Ryan Lochte earned his second gold medal of the competition with a time of 3:55.70 in the 400m IM. His teammate Tyler Clary (Riverside, Calif.) led the race at the 200 meter mark but Lochte's strong breaststroke leg put him ahead of Clary going into the final 100 meters.
"I wasn't really expecting that," Lochte said of his world-record swim. "I was going out there to race the field. I had no idea where I was at during the race. I'm really happy. It was a world record and you always have to be happy with that."
Tunisia's Ous Mellouli picked up the silver medal with a time of 3:57.40 while Team USA's Clary grabbed the bronze with a time of 3:57.56.
Natalie Coughlin earned her first short course World Championship gold in the women's 100m back with a time of 56.08. Coughlin's time earned her both the American and championship record in the event. Her strong underwater work helped her in the close race as she finished only a tenth ahead of China's Zhao Jing, who earned the silver in 56.18. Gao Chang of China won the bronze in 56.21. Melissa Franklin (Centennial, Colo.) was fourth in 56.92.
The men's 800m free relay saw an extremely close race between the U.S. and Russia. The U.S. team of Peter Vanderkaay (Rochester, Mich.), Lochte, Garrett Weber-Gale (Milwaukee, Wis.) and Ricky Berens (Charlotte, N.C.) took home the silver in 6:49.58, a new American record time. Russia won the gold in 6:49.04 to break the world record and the French earned bronze in 6:53.05.
Rebecca Soni (Plainsboro, N.J.) also won gold for Team USA with her strong swim in the 50m breast. The Olympic gold medalist finished in 29.83, a personal best time. Australia's Leiston Pickett was second in 29.84 and Jin Zhao of China was third in 29.90.
Kate Zielger (Great Falls, Va.) swam to a bronze medal in the women's 800m free. The race was extremely close from start to finish and Ziegler finished in 8:12.84. Spain's Eirka Villaecija Garcia won the gold in 8:11.61 and Mireia Belmonte Garcia, also from Spain, earned the silver in 8:12.48. Chloe Sutton (Mission Viejo, Calif.) finished seventh in 8:16.54.
In the men's final of the 100m breast, Mike Alexandrov (Champaign, Ill.) placed fourth with a time of 57.42. South Africa's Cameron Van Der Burgh won the event with a championship-record time of 56.80. Italy's Fabio Scozzoli was second in 57.13 and Brazil's Felipe Silva was third in 57.39.
Nick Thoman (Cincinnati, Ohio) was fourth in the men's final of the 100m back with a time of 50.38 while David Plummer (Oklahoma City, Okla.) finished sixth in 50.59. Russia's Stanislav Donets won the gold in 49.07, a new championship record, France's Camile Lacourt earned the silver in 49.80 and Spain's Aschwin Wildeboer Faber won bronze in 50.04.
The men's 100m fly final was won by Russia's Evgeny Korotyshkin with a time of 50.23. Albert Subirats of Venezuela was second in 50.24 and Brazil's Kaio Almeida was third in 50.33. There were no American swimmers in the final.
In the semifinals of the women's 100m free, Coughlin and Dana Vollmer (Granbury, Texas) both advanced to the final. Coughlin, who broke the American record in the morning prelims with a time of 52.27, swam a 52.52 in the semifinal to earn the third seed in Friday's final. Vollmer swam a 52.67 and will be seeded fourth in the final.
In other semifinal action, Christine Magnuson (Tinley Park, Ill.) qualified as the seventh seed in the women's 50m fly final with a time of 25.65, a new American record. Vollmer finished ninth, just missing the final, in 25.84.
The men's 50m free semifinals saw a swim-off between Josh Schneider (Cincinnati, Ohio) and Australia's Kyle Richardson for the eighth seed spot in the final. The two swimmers tied in the semifinals with a time of 21.29 but Schneider earned the spot in the final when the two swimmers went head-to-head. Schneider swam a 21.19 and Richardson finished in 21.28. Nathan Adrian (Bremerton, Wash.) finished eleventh in the semifinals in 21.35 and did not advance to the final.
