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 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
The 2006 Doha Asian Games started with fireworks last night with a captivating opening ceremony. Swimming heats and finals will begin today, with the heats due to start in around 20 minutes from now. The schedule for swimming events is as follows :
Day 1 Events - W200fr, M400im, W100fly, W50br, M200fly, W4x100med
Day 2 Events - M100fly, W400im, W200ba, M50br, W4x100fr
Day 3 Events - W50ba, M50fr, W400fr, M100br, W200fly, M200ba, M4x200fr
Day 4 Events - M50fly, W100br, M400fr, W50fr, M100ba, W4x200fr, M4x100fr
Day 5 Events - W100fr, M100fr, W200br, M200im, W100ba, W800fr
Day 6 Events - M50ba, W200im, M200br, W50fly, M1500fr, M4x100med
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12/2/2006, 8:49 am
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Re: 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
Swimming's day 1 heats have started. In the first event, the women's 200m freestyle, Japan's Maki Mita timed 2:00.4 to win her heat and lead the qualifiers. Favourites Pang Jiaying and Yang Yu of China both won their respective heats with 2:01.6 and 2:02 to place 2nd and 3rd.
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12/2/2006, 9:30 am
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Re: 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
Day 1 Summary
China swept five of six gold medals on the first day of competition. World short-course champion Wu Peng (CHN) shone in the men's 200m butterfly final with a new Chinese national record of 1:54.91, 0.88 seconds faster than his previous best time. He trailed behind the two Japanese swimmers at the 150m mark but unleashed an amazing 29.27 split to clock the World No. 2 time this year. 2005 World Championship silver medalist Takeshi Matsuda (JPN) claimed silver medal in 1:55.49 whilst pre-race favourite Ryuichi Shibata (JPN) took third place in 1:56.44 despite leading for first 150m. Chen Yin (CHN) came close to his personal best with a time of 1:56.96 but failed to medal.
The first swimming gold medal of the night went to China as expected in the women's 200m freestyle final. Everyone appeared tentative throughout the first half of the race ( perhaps due to first-race jitters ); they waited for each other to make the first move. World short-course champion Yang Yu (CHN) kept within striking distance of early leader Yang Chin Kuei (TPE) who led at the half-way mark in 58.88 secs. Meanwhile, over at lanes 4 and 5, pre-race favourite Pang Jiaying (CHN) shadowed Japanese champion Maki Mita (JPN). After the turn at 100m, Pang Jiaying sped away and tried to shake off the pack; Maki Mita responded and tried to chase Pang. With the now leading pair pulling away from the pack, Yang Yu abandoned her early target Yang Chin Kuei and pursued Maki Mita instead. Pang Jiaying turned on full power after the last turn to cover the final 50m in 29.49 secs. Yang Yu chased down Maki Mita in the final 10m to out-touch her by a margin of 0.05 secs.
Hidemasa Sano (JPN) was the dominant victor in the men's 400m IM, winning in a time of 4:16.18. He led by more than four seconds after 200m and never looked in danger in spite of a late charge in the freestyle leg by Shinya Taniguchi who secured a 1-2 finish for Japan in a time of 4:17.91. Han Kyu Chul (KOR) took bronze medal in 4:21.78 using a strong breaststroke leg.
Five swimmers went under one minute in the women's 100m butterfly final and the three medalists swam under 59 seconds. Zhou Yafei (CHN) came within 0.07 seconds of her Asian record set at the selection trials in September. Xu Yanwei (CHN) led after 50m from Lane 1 but was unable to pull off an upset. Fastest qualifier Tao Li (SIN) gave her all in the second 50m to clock the fastest back-half (30.61s) in the race; her 58.96s not only gave her a bronze medal and new Singapore national record, it was also a personal best time by over a second.
Ji Liping (CHN) powered to victory in the women's 50m breaststroke with a time of 31.52 seconds. Asami Kitagawa (JPN) was second in 32.27 secs whilst Wang Qun took the bronze medal in 32.53 secs. This race shows that the juniors from China are still lagging far behind Olympic Champion Luo Xuejuan and are unable to replace her in the team on the international stage as yet.
In the final event of the night, Japan nearly upset China in the women's 4x100m medley relay. China made a nearly fatal mistake of fielding Luo Nan in the breaststroke leg despite knowing they're at a disadvantage in the backstroke leg. Luo Nan is better at 200m and although she won the 100m event at selection trials, her slow first half is unsuitable for relays especially when they're expected to trail behind Japan in the opening leg. Reiko Nakamura (JPN) started off strong for Japan and gave them a 0.31 sec lead in the backstroke over Zhao Jing (CHN). Asami Kitagawa (JPN) extended the lead to 0.75 seconds in the breaststroke leg over Luo Nan (CHN). Zhou Yafei (CHN) then leapt into the pool, just minutes after the women's 100m fly medal ceremony, to chase down Yuko Nakanishi in first 50m and stormed to the wall with a fast 57.96s split. Yuko Nakanishi swam 59.56 secs and Japan was now 0.85 secs behind China going into the final leg. Pang Jiaying (CHN) then anchored China to victory, holding off a late charge by Maki Mita (JPN) in the final 10m.
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12/3/2006, 2:19 pm
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Re: 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
Complete results available at the official Doha Asian Games website:
Link to swimming results (with splits) at Doha Asian Games website
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12/3/2006, 2:22 pm
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Re: 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
Day 1 Quotes
Wu Peng after winning the men's 200m fly in 1:54.91.
"I couldn't believe it. It's overwhelming."
Wu Peng in a post-race interview.
"After I touched the wall at the final turn, I knew it was crunch time. I'm very familiar with the race strategies of my two Japanese opponents. I've swam against Matsuda at the 2005 Worlds and I've watched Shibata's races on tape so many times. The last time I won this event at Asian Games, I was a rookie without any expectations from others and was able to upset the favourite Takashi Yamamoto then. This time, I'm no longer a stranger to my competitors and I also have to prepare fully in order to defend my title successfully. I've lost to the Japanese in several meets after 2002 Asian Games so it's great to get one back.
The Japs also prepared very well, especially their Head Coach. I heard he even went to my blog and read about my training and how I decided to drop the 400m IM due to a late change in schedule. "
Zhou Yafei after hearing about the Japanese Head Coach and Wu Peng's blog.
"It's true. I met him at the Asian Games restaurant the other day. He pulled out some notes from a huge pile of papers and asked if the name listed there was mine. It's the translated Japanese version of my blog !"
China's Head Coach Zhang Yadong admitted in an interview earlier he's a frequent visitor to the blog of Japan's Head Coach himself.
Wu Peng's mum after he won the race.
"He's particularly good at racing. Today's time is his personal best, and can even ranked among the top three in the world this year. I hope he can sustain this momentum to 2008."
Pang Jiaying on how Wu Peng's gold medal is the most valuable even though she won two gold medals herself on the first night.
"His gold medal is the most precious for our swim team today. Even though he's the defending champion, he went in as an underdog against two Japanese top swimmers in the world, trailed behind for most part of the race but eventually caused an upset with a personal best time. His gold medal is definitely the most worthy among the five we won tonight."
Ryuichi Shibata after his race.
"I didn't realise Wu Peng would swim so fast in the final 50m."
"If we continue to lose like that, it would be disastrous. I'm sure we'll bounce back very soon."
"I do not think the Chinese team is superior even though they won the majority of the gold medals today. The meet has just started, we may not have happened well today but I believe a lot of our team mates have begun to adjust to the racing conditions here and will perform much better in next few days. We still have many strong events left in the competition."
Takeshi Matsuda (JPN) after the race.
"I've already gave my best efforts. It's regretful we didn't win the gold medal. I was still ahead of Wu Peng after 150m, but his finish was simply too powerful. I think the Chinese swimmers are stronger than we expected. Going towards 2008, they 've really put in a lot of effort in training their squad."
Hidemasa Sano (JPN) after winning the first gold medal for Japan, both in swimming and at this Asian Games.
"I thought about winning Japan's first gold medal and there was some pressure on me. I went out very fast in my race according to plan and succeeded in winning gold. I'm very pleased with achieving what I set out to do."
Sano now looks forward to the World Championships in Melbourne next year and he hopes to keep improving.
Pang Jiaying (CHN) on her win in the 200m freestyle.
"Although the time isn't great, I was suffering from sinusitis during my pre-meet training so I'm satisfied. "
Yang Yu (CHN) who was far off her best time.
"It was nowhere near my best time but I'm not worried. I treat the Asian Games as only a special training meet. My ultimate goal is 2008 Olympics."
Ji Liping (CHN) after winning the women's 50m breaststroke.
"I didn't feel any pressure before my race. I was confident I'll win this event. My strength is in my legs, which can deliver the powerful kicks I need especially in the last 5 to 10m of the race."
"Although Luo Xuejuan isn't here, we don't feel that pressurised. I'm still very young so all I think about is how to swim to the best of my capabilities. "
"2008 goal? It's too early for me to think about 2008, I still have a lot to learn. I just hope to swim some fast times in 2008."
Wang Qun (CHN) on her results which was below expectations.
"I only placed third today and my time was off my personal best by a second, but it's normal. I had to swim several meets earlier this year and travel to many places so my fitness isn't at the best level at the moment. I hope I can adjust better the next few days and reach another level in the 100m event."
Last edited by sportsworld, 12/3/2006, 4:04 pm
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12/3/2006, 3:09 pm
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Re: 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
China's Head Coach Zhang Yadong (CHN) in a brief interview over the phone.
Zhang: "I finally gave out red packet money today. (Chinese version of cash incentives, usually given from elders during festive season)"
Reporter: "Yes. Five big red packets !"
Zhang: "Not so many. Only one for Wu Peng."
Reporter: "Weren't there five gold medals ?"
Zhang: *laughs* "This red packet is very big. So big that you can't even carry it."
(According to earlier news, a personal best time is worth world 100K RMB plus other cash incentives for gold medals especially for men's events)
Zhang: "OVerall, I'm quite satisfied with their performances tonight. The women's 200m freestyle, because it's the first final of the night, all of the competitors were overly cautious but Pang Jiaying was eventually able to make her move. In the women's 100m fly, Zhou Yafei swam well and reflected her training standards. The rookies won a gold and a bronze in the women's 50m breaststroke. They're still very young and are lacking in many aspects but they've delivered what they're capable of. Wu Peng is of course the highlight of the night. The women's relay team has always been strong so the gold medal was expected. "
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12/3/2006, 4:18 pm
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Re: 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
Day 2 Quotes after morning heats
Ryo Takayasu (JPN), fastest qualifier in the men's 100m butterfly.
"I'm feeling really great in the water today. I think I can swim much faster tonight and will do my best to win a gold medal. I'll also aim for a new Asian record in this event. "
Qi Hui (CHN) after winning her heats in 4:43.52 against a 4:45.27 by Fujino Maiko (JPN).
Qi Hui: "The heats time is slightly faster than I expected. I hope to reach my best tonight. I'm going for a gold medal and a personal best. This is my best chance and I believe I can get it."
Fujino Maiko: "I was a little nervous before the race. I held back a bit in the first half to conserve more energy for the final. Tonight, I'll strive to swim a personal best."
Park Tae Hwan (KOR) led the men's 200m freestyle qualifiers in a meet record of 1:49.75.
"I'm very glad to swim a new meet record. I have high confidence in winning tonight and hope to break the Asian record. "
Kosuke Kitajima (JPN) qualified 2nd in the men's 50m breaststroke.
"Even though our team only got one gold yesterday, we do not concede defeat to the Chinese team. We're all fired up and still want to defeat them."
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12/3/2006, 4:30 pm
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Re: 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
Day 2 Quotes after finals
Park Tae Hwan (KOR) who set a new Asian record of 1:47.12 in the men's 200m freestyle.
"My target before I came to Doha was three gold medals. Now, I'm thinking if I give my all, I may even win all four individual events I entered for -- the 100m, 200m, 400m and 1500m freestyle. "
"My long-term goals are the World Championships next year and the 2008 Olympics. I hope by that time, I can swim some spectacular times in the freestyle events."
Qi Hui (CHN), winner of women's 400m IM, wasn't pleased with her 4:38.31.
"My breaststroke wasn't fast enough. It's a pity I missed out on a personal best time. I swam rather well in the heats and was expecting a much faster time in the final."
On her junior Yu Rui who became the second Chinese swimmer to receive a red packet from Head coach Zhang Yadong.
"Today's biggest surprise was my team mate Yu Rui who made a huge improvement. She'll be a strong contender in future for sure, whether it's at national or international level. "
Her coach Ye Jin on Qi Hui's performance.
"The gold medal in 400m IM was expected. She actually did quite well in the breaststroke but her backstroke dragged her down; she floundered both her turns during that leg. "
Kosuke Kitajima (JPN) who suffered a shock defeat at the hands of Vladislav Polyakov (Kaz).
"Today, I made some glaring mistakes in the 50m event; my start was horrendous. Nevertheless, 50m breaststroke is not my best event and the distance is short enough that any mistake will be magnified so I'm not surprised with my defeat. I still have chances at the 100m and 200m races, my confidence remains. "
Vladislav Polyakov, winner of the men's 50m breaststroke, is actually better at longer events. He won the men's 200m breaststroke world title at the World Short-course Championships in April this year. Polyakov also came in sixth in the 100m breaststroke.
"I was still a rookie at the 2004 Athens Olympics, no one bothered to take a second look at me. However, my results have improved steadily from then onwards and I hope to swim fast at 2008 Olympics. "
He knows Kitajima and world record holder Brendan Hansen (USA) will be major contenders in the men's breaststroke events in Beijing.
"The competition will be very intense in 2008. My wish is to win an Olympic medal."
Last edited by sportsworld, 12/6/2006, 4:03 pm
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12/5/2006, 4:59 pm
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willchan
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Re: 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
What a shame for chinese men's 4x100 and 4x200 free team. A finger tip to the victory!! I thought 4x200 quartet had done their best. Matsuda's 1st leg was just superb (1:47.83) which really made things tough for Chinese team. Zhang Lin's last chase was "bravo". Anyway, they improved NR like 5 seconds. The time is good enough to make to the Olympics final.
Actually, I had a higher hope for Chinese 4x100 team. Zhang Yadong blamed Qu Jingyu on the poor performance but I thought it was a bit unfair since his best is only around 50.5s and he vs Hosokawa put too much pressure on him. I thought Zhang tried to mimic Japanese 4x200m team that the best swimmers swim 1st but the difference was Matsuda did a great job that pulled Japanese to 3 sec advantage over Chinese while Huang Shaohua did a bad job that he even finished 0.1 sec behind Japanese 1st leg, Kojima. Huang swam a 49.90s in the morning but only managed to swim 50.53s in the final, even slower than his 1st-leg time in Busan 2002(50.45s). The failure of Chinese 4x100 more or less was fated in the beginning although Chen Zuo swam a superb 48.73s in the 2nd leg and Cai Li maintained the momentum. Hope Chen Zuo can stop Park's 4-gold dream in 100m free today.
I found that no Games records are shown in the swimming events of this edition of Asian Games. Somewhat strange to me
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12/6/2006, 7:11 am
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sportsworld
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Re: 2006 Doha Asian Games Swimming Reports and Results
I didn't catch the last few finals yesterday but will watch the recorded DVD later  . From the results and splits posted at the official website, Huang Shaohua was nearly a second off his PB. Usually he's the one who performs well at major meets, especially in relays, so it's rather surprising. Chen Zuo swam his freestyle split PB of 48.73 and Cai Li did fine with his 49.73 split. Qu Jingyu was more an IM swimmer; you're right, his 100m free is usually around 50.5 and above so his split of 50.27 (around a 50.7 swim) isn't that far from his PB.
In the men's 200m freestyle on Monday, Zhang Lin really gave his best efforts (1:46.9 split - around a 1:47.4 swim) in the anchor leg even though he was trailing far behind when he jumped in. Too bad he lost by a whisker at the wall, very admirable though  . According to the reports, Zhang Yadong said Matsuda's swim was totally unexpected. Actually, Takeshi Matsuda swam a new Japanese record of 1:48.07 a month back in a lead-off relay leg at a minor meet. So, it isn't that shocking for him to improve to a 1:47.83 (-0.24s) in a similar situation. I posted the English and Chinese version of the above news here and the Chinese version at other Chinese message boards but apparently their "intelligence" team didn't pick it up.
Anyway, this is only the Asian Games, I hope both teams and other Asian swimmers like Park Tae Hwan, Tao Li etc can swim much faster at the Worlds in three months. For the Chinese, I supposed this Games also doubles as their World Championship trials.
Last edited by sportsworld, 12/6/2006, 4:06 pm
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12/6/2006, 3:58 pm
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