BEIJING —

Japanese record holder Ryosuke Irie came up short in his bid to make the medals podium on Friday, finishing fifth in the men’s 200-meter backstroke final at the Beijing Games. In the 200 backstroke, 18-year-old Olympic debutant Irie clocked 1:55.72 seconds while Lochte broke his own world record to win the gold and in the process deny fellow American Aaron Peirsol a sweep of the backstroke titles for the second Olympics in a row. Lochte powered home in 1:53.94 seconds while Peirsol took silver in 1:54.33 and Russian Arkady Vyatchanin bronze in 1:54.93. ‘‘My swim wasn’t strong enough to get a good time. I could not handle the pressure,’’ Irie said. ‘‘I knew the real battle would be in the last 50 meters but I didn’t have any strength. There is no way at my current level that I can be called an ace.’ Teammate Ken Takakuwa also finished fifth with a new Japanese mark in the men’s 200 individual medley. Hungary’s Laszlo Cseh won the silver in 1:56.52 and Lochte of the United States the bronze in 1:56.53 while Takakuwa clocked 1:58.22. ‘‘I tried to put power into the butterfly leg so I would not get left behind,’’ Takakuwa said. ‘‘I am pleased (to set the Japanese record).’’

In qualifying action, Japan’s Reiko Nakamura finished fourth fastest in the women’s 200 backstroke semis in a national record of 2:08.21 but Hanae Ito failed to advance after placing 12th in 2:09.86. Zimbabwe’s Kirsty Coventry topped the field in 2:07.76. ‘‘In the heats, I didn’t swim fast in the first half but today I was swimming aggressively and thinking about making the final,’’ Nakamura said. ‘‘I don’t think I can get a medal if I do not make 2:06. I chased both time and medal too much in the 100 (backstroke) and that was my mistake. I would like to concentrate on the performance rather than the result.’’

Kyodo

2 Comments

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  smithinjapan at 10:01 AM JST - 16th August

  Ah, well... they gave it a good show. And anyway, the J-swimmers faired better than normal. Good for Japan.

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  rajakumar at 11:13 AM JST - 16th August

  No worries, there many medals for japan swimmers,at Asiad 2010 China.

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