Ivri 5th in 100m fly; one last medal chance for Nevo

Gal Nevo will look to claim Israel’s second medal of the European Swimming Championships on Sunday.

By ALLON SINAI, AP
GAL NEVO 311 (photo credit: FIsrael Swimming Association)
GAL NEVO 311
(photo credit: FIsrael Swimming Association)
Gal Nevo will look to claim Israel’s second medal of the European Swimming Championships on Sunday to cap what has been an excellent competition for the blue-and-white team.
Guy Barnea ended Israel’s decade-long medal drought at the long-course Europeans when he took a bronze medal in the 50-meter backstroke final in Budapest on Thursday, with Nevo and Amit Ivri also having a championships to remember.
Ivri, who came eighth in the 50m butterfly earlier in the event, finished fifth in the 100m fly final on Friday, clocking a time of 58.73 seconds.
Nevo ended the 200m individual medley final in fourth place last week and will be hoping to go at least one place better in his favorite event on Sunday, the 400m IM.
The championships end Sunday with eight finals. The women will compete in the 50 and 400 freestyle, 50 breaststroke, 200 butterfly and the 4x100 medley relay, while the men will have the 50 freestyle, 400 IM and the 4x100 medley relay.
Meanwhile, Federica Pellegrini of Italy set a new meet record in winning the women’s 200-meter freestyle on Saturday.
Pellegrini, the world record holder in the event, won in 1 minute, 55.98 seconds, 1.53 seconds ahead of Silke Lippok of Germany. Hungary’s Agnes Mutina was third.
Lotte Friis of Denmark led from start to finish in the women’s 1,500 freestyle event, touching in 15:59.13. Grainne Murphy of Ireland was 3.16 seconds behind. Erika Villaecija of Spain finished third.
“I was still tired from the 800,” said Friis, who won the 800 freestyle on Thursday and was back in the pool Friday for the qualifying heats of the 1,500. “I think it is stupid to schedule these long distance events without a one-day break. Today I knew I would be able to win, but thought it would be closer.”
Aliaksandra Herasimenia of Belarus won the gold medal in the women’s 50 backstroke, breaking her own meet record set Friday of 27.98 seconds.
Herasimenia’s time of 27.64 was 0.35 seconds better than Daniela Samulski’s of Romania. Spaniard Mercedes Peris was third, a mere 0.02 seconds behind the Romanian.
“This is a great day for me. I won this gold medal and can’t yet believe it,” said Herasimenia, a native of Minsk and a silver medalist in the 100 freestyle on Wednesday. “You can only swim your own race in the 50 meters, and not look over to the others.”
Samulski was satisfied with her time of 27.99 and second place.
“I desperately wanted to swim under 28 seconds and that’s what I achieved,” Samulski said. “That’s my best time in a textile swim suit.”
The 30th edition of the European championships ending Sunday is the first major international event where competitors can no longer wear the neck-to-ankle outfits that helped set dozens of world records in recent years.
Evgeny Korotyshkin of Russia improved on the meet record he shared with Ukraine’s Andriy Serdinov by winning the men’s 100 butterfly in 51.73 seconds. Joeri Verlinden of the Netherlands was 0.09 seconds off the pace.
Konrad Czerniak of Poland was third.
The men’s 200 backstroke went to Stanislav Donets of Russia, who swam 1:57.18 and only just managed to ward off a late rally from Markus Rogan of Austria.
Rogan was eighth – and last – during the first two laps, climbed to third after 150 meters and finished just 0.13 seconds behind the winner. Benjamin Stasiulis was third, 0.06 seconds slower than Markus.
Fabio Scozzoli won the men’s 50 breaststroke in 27.38 seconds, 0.09 seconds in front of Dragos Agache of Romania. Lennart Stekelenburg of the Netherlands was third, 0.13 seconds in back of Scozzoli.