After overhauling the Americans in the 4 × 100 freestyle relay with a stunning anchor leg, France's Yannick Agnel pulled away from a star-studded field by over a full body length to earn his second Olympic gold in swimming at these Games. Billed as the "Race of the Century", he came up again with a spectacular swim on the final stretch to hit the wall first in 1:43.14, posting a textile best in the process and moving rapidly to third in the world's all time rankings.[3][4] Meanwhile, South Korea's Park Tae-Hwan and China's Sun Yang tied for the silver medal in a matching time of 1:44.93, following a dramatic rivalry in the 400 m freestyle final two days earlier.[5][6] Agnel's gold was France's first medal in the men's 200 metre freestyle, with Sun's silver the first for China. Park was the fifth man to win multiple medals in the event, adding to his 2008 silver.
U.S. swimmer Ryan Lochte, the reigning world champion, missed the podium by 11-hundredths of a second with a fourth-place time in 1:45.04.[7][8] Germany's world-record holder Paul Biedermann faded down the stretch to pick up a fifth spot in 1:45.53, edging out British home favorite Robbie Renwick by a full body length with a highly-creditable, sixth-place effort (1:46.53).[9] Australia's Thomas Fraser-Holmes (1:46.93) and Russia's Danila Izotov (1:47.75) also vied for an Olympic medal to round out the stellar championship field.[6]
Notable swimmers missed out the final roster featuring Lochte's teammate Ricky Berens, who replaced Michael Phelps to fill out the slot for the Americans but placed ninth (1:46.87); and Switzerland's Dominik Meichtry, a sixth-place finalist in Beijing four years earlier, who finished fifteenth in the semifinals (1:48.25).[10]
This was the 14th appearance of the 200 metre freestyle event. It was first contested in 1900. It would be contested a second time, though at 220 yards, in 1904. After that, the event did not return until 1968; since then, it has been on the programme at every Summer Games.[2]
Four of the 8 finalists from the 2008 Games returned: silver medalist Park Tae-Hwan of South Korea, fifth-place finisher Paul Biedermann of Germany, sixth-place finisher Dominik Meichtry of Switzerland, and eighth-place finisher Robbie Renwick of Great Britain. Reigning gold medalist Michael Phelps qualified but elected not to compete in eight events again, dropping this event. Biedermann had won the 2009 World Championship and taken bronze in 2011. American Ryan Lochte was the reigning World Champion. Phelps had placed second both times. Lochte was the favourite without Phelps competing, though Park, Sun Yang of China (the 400 metres champion in London), and Yannick Agnel of France were serious contenders.[2]
Brunei, the Dominican Republic, and Paraguay each made their debut in the event. Australia made its 14th appearance, the only nation to have competed in all prior editions of the event.
Each National Olympic Committee (NOC) could enter up to two swimmers if both met the Olympic Qualifying Time (or "OQT"). An NOC with no swimmers meeting the OQT but at least one swimmer meeting the Olympic Selection Time (or "OST") was not guaranteed a place, but was eligible for selection to fill the overall 900 swimmer quota for the Games. For 2012, the OQT was 1:47.82 while the OST was 1:51.59. The qualifying window was 1 March 2011 to 3 July 2012; only approved meets (generally international competitions and national Olympic trials) during that period could be used to meet the standards. There were also universality places available; if no male swimmer from a nation qualified in any event, the NOC could enter one male swimmer in an event.
Nine nations (Australia, the Cayman Islands, China, France, Great Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, Russia, and the United States) had two swimmers meet the OQT. Five more (Hungary, New Zealand, Paraguay, South Korea, and Switzerland) had one swimmer qualify through the OQT. 12 NOCs received a place through OST selection. 6 nations used universality places in the men's 200 metre freestyle.
The two swimmers per NOC limit had been in place since the 1984 Games.
Competition formatEdit
The competition followed the format established in 2000, with three rounds: heats, semifinals, and a final. The advancement rule followed the format introduced in 1952. A swimmer's place in the heat was not used to determine advancement; instead, the fastest times from across all heats in a round were used. The top 16 swimmers from the heats advanced to the semifinals. The top 8 semifinalists advanced to the final. Swim-offs were used as necessary to break ties.
This swimming event used freestyle swimming, which means that the method of the stroke is not regulated (unlike backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly events). Nearly all swimmers use the front crawl or a variant of that stroke. Because an Olympic-size swimming pool is 50 metres long, this race consisted of four lengths of the pool.
RecordsEdit
Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.
^"Swimming: Results & Schedules". London 2012. NBC Olympics. 29 July 2012. Archived from the original on 3 July 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
^ abc"200 metres Freestyle, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
^"France's Agnel wins 200-metre freestyle gold". France 24. 30 July 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
^"Yannick Agnel wins 200 freestyle". ESPN. 30 July 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
^"Park Tae-hwan Settles for Second Silver in 200-m Free". The Chosun Ilbo. 31 July 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
^ ab. Swimming World Magazine. 30 July 2012. Archived from the original on 27 May 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
^"Ryan Lochte finishes fourth in 200-meter freestyle at London Olympics, France's Yannick Agnel wins gold". New York Daily News. 30 July 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
^Clarey, Christopher (30 July 2012). "Agnel Outduels Lochte Again as French Savor Early Success". New York Times. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
^"Spofforth, Tancock, and Renwick miss out". Team GB. 30 July 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
^. Swimming World Magazine. 29 July 2012. Archived from the original on 28 January 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
^Dillman, Lisa (29 July 2009). "Suit case: German ends Phelps' reign". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
^Jeffery, Nicole (29 July 2009). "Paul Biedermann beats Michael Phelps in 200m freestyle". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
^"Phelps breaks 200 free world record by nearly a second". ESPN. 11 August 2008. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
^. London2012.com. LOCOG. Archived from the original on 2 May 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
External linksEdit
NBC Olympics Coverage
October 19, 2023
swimming, 2012, summer, olympics, metre, freestyle, metre, freestyle, event, 2012, summer, olympics, took, place, july, london, aquatics, centre, london, united, kingdom, there, were, competitors, from, nations, metre, freestyleat, games, olympiadgold, medalis. The men s 200 metre freestyle event at the 2012 Summer Olympics took place on 29 30 July at the London Aquatics Centre in London United Kingdom 1 There were 40 competitors from 31 nations 2 Men s 200 metre freestyleat the Games of the XXX OlympiadGold medalist Yannick AgnelVenueLondon Aquatics CentreDatesJuly 29 2012 heats amp semifinals July 30 2012 final Competitors40 from 31 nationsWinning time1 43 14MedalistsYannick Agnel FranceSun Yang ChinaPark Tae Hwan South Korea 20082016 After overhauling the Americans in the 4 100 freestyle relay with a stunning anchor leg France s Yannick Agnel pulled away from a star studded field by over a full body length to earn his second Olympic gold in swimming at these Games Billed as the Race of the Century he came up again with a spectacular swim on the final stretch to hit the wall first in 1 43 14 posting a textile best in the process and moving rapidly to third in the world s all time rankings 3 4 Meanwhile South Korea s Park Tae Hwan and China s Sun Yang tied for the silver medal in a matching time of 1 44 93 following a dramatic rivalry in the 400 m freestyle final two days earlier 5 6 Agnel s gold was France s first medal in the men s 200 metre freestyle with Sun s silver the first for China Park was the fifth man to win multiple medals in the event adding to his 2008 silver U S swimmer Ryan Lochte the reigning world champion missed the podium by 11 hundredths of a second with a fourth place time in 1 45 04 7 8 Germany s world record holder Paul Biedermann faded down the stretch to pick up a fifth spot in 1 45 53 edging out British home favorite Robbie Renwick by a full body length with a highly creditable sixth place effort 1 46 53 9 Australia s Thomas Fraser Holmes 1 46 93 and Russia s Danila Izotov 1 47 75 also vied for an Olympic medal to round out the stellar championship field 6 Notable swimmers missed out the final roster featuring Lochte s teammate Ricky Berens who replaced Michael Phelps to fill out the slot for the Americans but placed ninth 1 46 87 and Switzerland s Dominik Meichtry a sixth place finalist in Beijing four years earlier who finished fifteenth in the semifinals 1 48 25 10 Contents 1 Background 2 Qualification 3 Competition format 4 Records 5 Schedule 6 Results 6 1 Heats 6 2 Semifinals 6 3 Final 7 References 8 External linksBackground EditThis was the 14th appearance of the 200 metre freestyle event It was first contested in 1900 It would be contested a second time though at 220 yards in 1904 After that the event did not return until 1968 since then it has been on the programme at every Summer Games 2 Four of the 8 finalists from the 2008 Games returned silver medalist Park Tae Hwan of South Korea fifth place finisher Paul Biedermann of Germany sixth place finisher Dominik Meichtry of Switzerland and eighth place finisher Robbie Renwick of Great Britain Reigning gold medalist Michael Phelps qualified but elected not to compete in eight events again dropping this event Biedermann had won the 2009 World Championship and taken bronze in 2011 American Ryan Lochte was the reigning World Champion Phelps had placed second both times Lochte was the favourite without Phelps competing though Park Sun Yang of China the 400 metres champion in London and Yannick Agnel of France were serious contenders 2 Brunei the Dominican Republic and Paraguay each made their debut in the event Australia made its 14th appearance the only nation to have competed in all prior editions of the event Qualification EditMain article Swimming at the 2012 Summer Olympics Qualification Each National Olympic Committee NOC could enter up to two swimmers if both met the Olympic Qualifying Time or OQT An NOC with no swimmers meeting the OQT but at least one swimmer meeting the Olympic Selection Time or OST was not guaranteed a place but was eligible for selection to fill the overall 900 swimmer quota for the Games For 2012 the OQT was 1 47 82 while the OST was 1 51 59 The qualifying window was 1 March 2011 to 3 July 2012 only approved meets generally international competitions and national Olympic trials during that period could be used to meet the standards There were also universality places available if no male swimmer from a nation qualified in any event the NOC could enter one male swimmer in an event Nine nations Australia the Cayman Islands China France Great Britain Germany the Netherlands Russia and the United States had two swimmers meet the OQT Five more Hungary New Zealand Paraguay South Korea and Switzerland had one swimmer qualify through the OQT 12 NOCs received a place through OST selection 6 nations used universality places in the men s 200 metre freestyle The two swimmers per NOC limit had been in place since the 1984 Games Competition format EditThe competition followed the format established in 2000 with three rounds heats semifinals and a final The advancement rule followed the format introduced in 1952 A swimmer s place in the heat was not used to determine advancement instead the fastest times from across all heats in a round were used The top 16 swimmers from the heats advanced to the semifinals The top 8 semifinalists advanced to the final Swim offs were used as necessary to break ties This swimming event used freestyle swimming which means that the method of the stroke is not regulated unlike backstroke breaststroke and butterfly events Nearly all swimmers use the front crawl or a variant of that stroke Because an Olympic size swimming pool is 50 metres long this race consisted of four lengths of the pool Records EditPrior to this competition the existing world and Olympic records were as follows World record nbsp Paul Biedermann GER 1 42 00 Rome Italy 28 July 2009 11 12 Olympic record nbsp Michael Phelps USA 1 42 96 Beijing China 12 August 2008 13 Schedule EditThe competition returned to a two day schedule with heats and semifinals on the same day All times are British Summer Time UTC 1 Date Time RoundSunday 29 July 2012 10 2019 37 HeatsSemifinalsMonday 30 July 2012 19 43 FinalResults EditHeats Edit The top 16 advanced to the semifinals 14 Rank Heat Lane Swimmer Nation Time Notes1 5 5 Sun Yang nbsp China 1 46 24 Q2 5 4 Ryan Lochte nbsp United States 1 46 45 Q3 6 4 Yannick Agnel nbsp France 1 46 60 Q4 4 5 Danila Izotov nbsp Russia 1 46 61 Q5 6 5 Park Tae hwan nbsp South Korea 1 46 79 Q6 4 2 Robert Renwick nbsp Great Britain 1 46 86 Q7 6 2 Kenrick Monk nbsp Australia 1 46 94 Q8 5 3 Ricky Berens nbsp United States 1 47 07 Q9 5 7 Dominik Kozma nbsp Hungary 1 47 18 Q10 4 4 Paul Biedermann nbsp Germany 1 47 27 Q11 6 3 Sebastiaan Verschuren nbsp Netherlands 1 47 31 Q12 4 3 Gregory Mallet nbsp France 1 47 39 Q13 6 6 Thomas Fraser Holmes nbsp Australia 1 47 50 Q14 5 2 Brett Fraser nbsp Cayman Islands 1 47 74 Q15 6 7 Artem Lobuzov nbsp Russia 1 47 91 Q16 4 6 Dominik Meichtry nbsp Switzerland 1 47 97 Q17 3 3 Blake Worsley nbsp Canada 1 48 1418 6 1 Matthew Stanley nbsp New Zealand 1 48 1919 4 1 Ieuan Lloyd nbsp Great Britain 1 48 5220 6 8 Shaune Fraser nbsp Cayman Islands 1 48 5321 3 4 Nimrod Shapira Bar Or nbsp Israel 1 48 6022 3 5 Cristian Quintero Valero nbsp Venezuela 1 48 7123 5 6 Li Yunqi nbsp China 1 48 7224 4 7 Clemens Rapp nbsp Germany 1 48 7525 3 7 Glenn Surgeloose nbsp Belgium 1 48 7726 5 8 Benjamin Hockin nbsp Paraguay 1 48 9127 3 2 David Brandl nbsp Austria 1 49 005 1 Dion Dreesens nbsp Netherlands 1 49 0029 4 8 Marco Belotti nbsp Italy 1 49 1430 3 6 Ahmed Mathlouthi nbsp Tunisia 1 49 6831 2 5 Matias Koski nbsp Finland 1 49 8432 2 4 Radovan Siljevski nbsp Serbia 1 51 4033 2 2 Mario Montoya nbsp Costa Rica 1 51 6634 2 3 Sebastian Jahnsen Madico nbsp Peru 1 52 3635 3 8 Tiago Venancio nbsp Portugal 1 52 3636 2 6 Jessie Lacuna nbsp Philippines 1 52 9137 1 4 Nicholas Schwab nbsp Dominican Republic 1 53 41 NR38 2 7 Raul Martinez Colomer nbsp Puerto Rico 1 54 2339 1 5 Mathieu Marquet nbsp Mauritius 1 58 9140 1 3 Anderson Lim nbsp Brunei 2 02 26 NR 3 1 Mads Glaesner nbsp Denmark DNSSemifinals Edit Rank Heat Lane Swimmer Nation Time Notes1 2 4 Sun Yang nbsp China 1 45 61 Q2 2 5 Yannick Agnel nbsp France 1 45 84 Q3 2 3 Park Tae hwan nbsp South Korea 1 46 02 Q4 1 2 Paul Biedermann nbsp Germany 1 46 10 Q5 1 4 Ryan Lochte nbsp United States 1 46 31 Q6 1 3 Robbie Renwick nbsp Great Britain 1 46 65 Q1 5 Danila Izotov nbsp Russia 1 46 65 Q8 2 1 Thomas Fraser Holmes nbsp Australia 1 46 80 Q9 1 6 Ricky Berens nbsp United States 1 46 8710 2 2 Dominik Kozma nbsp Hungary 1 46 9311 2 7 Sebastiaan Verschuren nbsp Netherlands 1 46 9512 1 1 Brett Fraser nbsp Cayman Islands 1 47 0113 2 6 Kenrick Monk nbsp Australia 1 47 3814 1 7 Gregory Mallet nbsp France 1 47 5615 1 8 Dominik Meichtry nbsp Switzerland 1 48 2516 2 8 Artem Lobuzov nbsp Russia 1 48 26Final Edit Rank Lane Swimmer Nation Time Notes nbsp 5 Yannick Agnel nbsp France 1 43 14 NR nbsp 4 Sun Yang nbsp China 1 44 93 NR3 Park Tae hwan nbsp South Korea 1 44 934 2 Ryan Lochte nbsp United States 1 45 045 6 Paul Biedermann nbsp Germany 1 45 536 1 Robbie Renwick nbsp Great Britain 1 46 537 8 Thomas Fraser Holmes nbsp Australia 1 46 938 7 Danila Izotov nbsp Russia 1 47 75References Edit Swimming Results amp Schedules London 2012 NBC Olympics 29 July 2012 Archived from the original on 3 July 2013 Retrieved 7 July 2013 a b c 200 metres Freestyle Men Olympedia Retrieved 1 July 2021 France s Agnel wins 200 metre freestyle gold France 24 30 July 2012 Retrieved 8 July 2013 Yannick Agnel wins 200 freestyle ESPN 30 July 2012 Retrieved 8 July 2013 Park Tae hwan Settles for Second Silver in 200 m Free The Chosun Ilbo 31 July 2012 Retrieved 8 July 2013 a b 2012 London Olympics Yannick Agnel Earns Second Gold of Meet With 200 Free Triumph Posts Textile Best Lochte Out of the Medals Swimming World Magazine 30 July 2012 Archived from the original on 27 May 2013 Retrieved 7 July 2013 Ryan Lochte finishes fourth in 200 meter freestyle at London Olympics France s Yannick Agnel wins gold New York Daily News 30 July 2012 Retrieved 8 July 2013 Clarey Christopher 30 July 2012 Agnel Outduels Lochte Again as French Savor Early Success New York Times Retrieved 8 July 2013 Spofforth Tancock and Renwick miss out Team GB 30 July 2012 Retrieved 8 July 2013 2012 London Olympics Sun Yang Yannick Agnel Post 1 45s to Lead Men s 200 Free Semis Lochte 5th Swimming World Magazine 29 July 2012 Archived from the original on 28 January 2013 Retrieved 8 July 2013 Dillman Lisa 29 July 2009 Suit case German ends Phelps reign Chicago Tribune Retrieved 8 July 2013 Jeffery Nicole 29 July 2009 Paul Biedermann beats Michael Phelps in 200m freestyle The Courier Mail Retrieved 8 July 2013 Phelps breaks 200 free world record by nearly a second ESPN 11 August 2008 Retrieved 13 May 2013 Men s 200m Freestyle Heats London2012 com LOCOG Archived from the original on 2 May 2012 Retrieved 27 July 2012 External links EditNBC Olympics Coverage Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Swimming at the 2012 Summer Olympics Men 27s 200 metre freestyle amp oldid 1147264016, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
