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Monday, July 29, 2013

Cambodian Team at 15th FINA Aquatics World Championship 2013



Cambodian Team at 15th FINA Aquatics World Championship 2013

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 Last Updated: 28.08.13

 NEWS IN THIS ISSUE:
1.     AQUATICS CAMBODIA EDITORIAL
2.     CAMBODIAN NATIONAL TEAM AT WC 2013 COVERAGE IN NATIONAL PRESS: ARTICLES AND COMMENTS BY AQUATICS CAMBODIA
3.     OFFICIAL ENTRIES DATA & RESULTS OF CAMBODIAN SWIMMERS AT WC 2013
4.     CAMBODIAN SWIMMERS PERFORMANCE AT WC 2013: ANALYSYS
5.     PHOTOS & FILMS FROM WC 2013
6.     NEWS FROM FINA
7.     THANK YOU BARCELONA! SEE YOU IN KAZAN!
8.     POSTFACTUM : UNPLEASANT CONVERSATION BY SMS AFTER  FINA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2013 WITH MR. HEM KIRY – CAMBODIAN NATIONAL TEAM COACH
9.     READERS/COUNTRIES/PAGEVIEWERS STATISTICS
10.    AQUATICS CAMBODIA LINKS FOR SOME SELECTED ARTICLES
11.     SELECTED ARTICLES ABOUT SPORT DEVELOPMENT IN CAMBODIA & SOME COMMENTS BY AQUATICS CAMBODIA

  
AQUATICS CAMBODIA EDITORIAL
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 CAMBODIAN NATIONAL TEAM AT WC 2013 COVERAGE IN NATIONAL PRESS: ARTICLES AND COMMENTS BY AQUATICS CAMBODIA
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Missy stays on golden path

Phnom Penh Post Newspaper
Mon, 5 August 2013
Eighteen-year-old American sensation Missy Franklin claimed her fifth world championship gold in Barcelona with victory in the 200m backstroke on Saturday.
Franklin was just outside her world record time from the Olympics last year, but did set a championship record as she was followed home by Australian Belinda Hocking and Canada’s Hilary Caldwell.
“It never gets easy. The competition here is the best in the world so you know every race will be a tough race,” she said.
“Every race is equally as difficult, but equally as rewarding at the same time.”
Not to be outdone by her teammate, 16-year-old Katie Ledecky secured her second world record and fourth gold of the meet in the 800m freestyle.
Ledecky had smashed the 1500m world record by six seconds earlier in the week, but she sneaked past Rebecca Adlington’s record in the 800m by just two 10ths of a second as, just like in the 1500m, Denmark’s Lotte Friis and New Zealander Lauren Boyle picked up silver and bronze respectively.
“I am thrilled, I exceeded my expectations for the year,” said a delighted Ledecky who also took gold in the 400m freestyle and 4x200m relay.
“The goal I set at the beginning of the year was three medals and one world record and now I have four golds and two world records so I couldn’t be happier.”
There was to be no 16th world title for Ryan Lochte on his 29th birthday as he could only finish sixth in the men’s 100m butterfly with Chad Le Clos claiming his second gold of the championships.
“It is unbelievable. To win two gold medals at a world championships is like a dream come true,” said the South African who had also taken the 200m butterfly on Thursday.
And there was also a second title of the meet for Brazil’s Cesar Cielo as he claimed gold in star-studded 50m freestyle final that contained five Olympic champions.
“I was not expected to win so this is the best feeling I’ve had after a race,” a joyful Cielo remarked after joining Alexander Popov in becoming the only non-Americans to win six individual world championship gold medals.
In a remarkable day in the women’s 50m breaststroke, the world record fell for a second time in a matter of hours as the world and Olympic champion over 100m Ruta Meilutyte passed the time set by Yuliya Efimova on Saturday morning to claim her second world record of the meet in 29.48 seconds.
Cambodia’s interests in the Barcelona pool saw Hem Thon Vitiny set a time of 39.53 seconds in her women’s 50m breaststroke heat, 8.03secs outside of the qualifying time, to come 70th out of 74 finishers at the world swimming championships in Barcelona on Saturday. Barely half an hour earlier, the Cambodian, who turns 20 on September 7, competed in the 50m freestyle heats, taking 74th place out of 83 by touching home in 31.05secs.
On Friday, Vitiny’s uncle Hem Thon Ponleu took a respectable 85th out of 105 in the men’s 50m freestyle heats by swimming 27.34secs. Neither Cambodian could improve on their personal bests set at last year’s Summer Olympics in London.
Meanwhile, Jeanette Ottesen Gray claimed Denmark’s first gold of the championships in the women’s 50m butterfly as she edged out Olympic silver medallist Lu Ying with Holland’s Ranomi Kromowidjojo claiming her second bronze in as many days.
AFP & DAN RILEY


Ye suffers shock worlds defeat


     Phnom Penh Post Newspaper
Wed, 31 July 2013
China’s Olympic champion Ye Shiwen finished a shock fourth in Monday’s 200m individual medley final, while teenager Ruta Meilutyte smashed the world record in the women’s 100m breaststroke semi-finals.
The 17-year-old Ye had been the hot favourite for Monday’s 200m IM final at swimming’s world championships in Barcelona, but finished a full second behind the medallists as Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu claimed gold.
Hosszu, 24, won by a considerable margin, clocking 2mins 07.92secs with Australia’s Alicia Coutts second at 1.47sec back and Spain’s Mireia Belmonte 1.53 behind, but defending champion Ye was a noticeable absentee on the dais.
Ye finished more than a second behind the medalists, which surprised Hosszu.
“I’m sure she will get back up there soon. She’s a great swimmer and I’m sure it is really tough to get back after an Olympic gold medal,” said Hosszu.
Ye has her next chance at an individual medal in this Sunday’s 400m IM, in which she set the world record at the Olympics last year in controversial fashion by swimming the last leg faster than Ryan Lochte did when he won the men’s Olympic title.
Lithuania’s teenage star Meilutyte, who pulled off a shock win in the Olympic 100m breaststroke final last year, punched the water in delight as she took a 10th of a second off the world record.
“The world record was always a dream for me, but yes, obviously a gold medal at the world championships would be like the cherry on top of the ice cream,” said the 16-year-old.
Meilutyte broke the four-year-old mark of 1min 4.45secs, set by Jessica Hardy of the US.
Swedish teenager Sarah Sjostrom regained her women’s 100m butterfly title, while defending champion and world record-holder Dana Vollmer could only take bronze. Sjostrom, who won the 2009 title aged just 15, hit the wall at 56.53secs, ahead of Coutts and Vollmer, America’s Olympic champion who set the world record in winning the Olympic crown.
Coutts claimed two silver medals in Monday night’s session, leaving her with three silvers in two days after anchoring the Australian team in Sunday’s 4x100m freestyle relay.
“It has been a big two days for me and I am really happy because now I have two days off,” said Coutts, who won five medals at the Olympics, Australia’s best haul in the pool in London.
There was more good news for the Antipodeans as Christian Sprenger gained revenge for his defeat in last year’s Olympic final when he won the men’s 100m breaststroke gold.
South Africa’s Olympic champion Cameron van der Burgh, who edged Sprenger into second in the Olympic final, was second and Brazil’s Felipe Lima third. Exactly a year to the day after the Olympic final, the 27-year-old Sprenger took his revenge as he overhauled the South African, the halfway leader, on the return lap.
In Monday’s other final, Brazil’s Cesar Cielo retained his men’s 50m butterfly world title, just 10 months after surgery on both knees.
Cielo claimed gold in a winning time of 23.01secs with Eugene Godsoe of the US just four hundredths of a second behind claiming silver and France’s Frederick Bousquet at 0.10sec back to win bronze.
In yesterday’s men’s 50m breaststroke heats, Cambodia’s Hem Thon Ponleu placed 69th out of 80 finishers with a time of 32.41 seconds, 5.63 slower than the top time posted by Van der Burgh.
Ponleu will also be the next Cambodian to race in Barcelona, when he vies in the men’s 50m freestyle heats this Friday.
Ponleu’s niece Hem Thon Vitiny will compete in both the women’s 50m freestyle and 50m breaststroke heats on Saturday, as compatriot Pu Sovichea returns to the pool for the men’s 1,500m freestyle.

AFP & DAN RILEY

  OFFICIAL ENTRIES DATA & RESULTS OF CAMBODIAN SWIMMERS AT WC 2013
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PERFORMANCE BY HEMTHON Ponloeu, 23 years old

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PERFORMANCE BY HEMTHON Vitiny, 19 years old

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PERFORMANCE BY POU Sovijja    

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 CAMBODIAN SWIMMERS PERFORMANCE AT WC 2013: ANALYSYS 

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 PHOTOS & FILMS FROM WC 2013
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NEWS FROM FINA

Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA)

The Fédération Internationale de Natation, FINA (founded in 1908) is the governing body for aquatics worldwide. Its five disciplines - Swimming, Open Water Swimming, Diving, Water Polo and Synchronised Swimming - are all included in the Olympic programme. FINA organises World Championships, World Swimming Championships in 25m-pool and World Masters Championships every two years. FINA counts 202 affiliated National Federations on the five continents and has its headquarters in Lausanne (SUI).

The eighth and last day of the swimming competitions at the 15th FINA World Championships was marked by the variety of nations getting gold in the eight finals in the programme. Only one country – France - clinched two gold medals, thanks to the performance of Camille Lacourt in the men’s 50m backstroke, and after the surprising disqualification of USA in the men’s 4x100m medley relay. With this final outcome, the French delegation arrived third (nine podium presences, including four titles) in the swimming medals’ table, behind USA (29, comprising 13 gold) and China (also nine awards, but five wins).

In the women’s 50m breaststroke, the duel between the two world record performers Yulia Efimova (RUS) and Ruta Meilutyte (LTU) ended up in the Russian’s favour, while Japan got the gold in the men’s 400m IM: but when everyone expected a win from Kosuke Hagino, it was his teammate Daiya Seto who got the crown.
Ranomi Kromowidjojo (NED) was the best in the 50m free (Fran Halsall, in bronze, gave the only medal for Great Britain in the swimming competition), and in the men’s 1500m free Yang Sun (CHN) comfortably won but could not approach his World Record set precisely one year ago at the 2012 Olympics.

Hungary has good reasons to celebrate with the victory of Katinka Hosszu in the women’s 400m IM, but the home crowd also vibrantly cheered the silver performance of Mireia Belmonte (ESP). The only US title of the day happened in the women’s 4x100m medley, with Franklin, Hardy, Vollmer and Romano perfectly controlling the operations in the water and… on the starting blocks!

At the end of the session, were given the FINA Championships Trophies to the best Male and Female swimmer, as well as the best Team of the competition.

Among men, the award went to Yang Sun (CHN), while Katie Ledecky (USA) was the winner in the women’s field. Both athletes medalled in the same events: 400m, 800m, 1500m free and 4x200m free relay – all in gold for Ledecky and titles for Yang in the individual events and bronze in the relay. Moreover, the US and Chinese star were the second swimmers in the history of the Championships to have won in the same edition the longest free events in the programme: before Ledecky and Sun, only Hannah Stockbauer (GER) in 2003 and Grant Hackett (AUS) in 2005 respectively, had achieved the same feat.

The Trophy for the best Team went without surprise to the USA.

World Championships: FINA and OC praise successful edition in Barcelona (ESP)    
Before the last swimming session, FINA and the Organising Committee (OC) of the 15th FINA World Championships in Barcelona (ESP) expressed their satisfaction for the outstanding success of the competition. In a joint Press Conference in the main venue of the Championships, the Palau Sant Jordi, FINA President Dr. Julio C. Maglione, and the co-presidents of the OC, Maite Fandos (Vice Mayor of Barcelona) and Fernando Carpena (President of the Royal Spanish Swimming Federation) highlighted the competitive aspects, but also the sport and social legacy left by FINA’s major event.
“Barcelona became the world capital of sport for these two weeks and this positive impact, in terms of media exposure, will bring significant benefits for our city and for our region. From a touristic point of view, the images of our city were seen in more than 200 territories around the world; we also had more than 13,000 news in Spanish media related with the Championships, which is an outstanding figure”, stated Maite Fandos.

Marton Szivos and Viktor Nagy delivered when needed as Hungary won a third men’s Water Polo World Championship by beating Montenegro in a heart-stopping 8-7 on the final day at the Bernat Picornell Pool.
Hungary just loves winning in Barcelona, collecting the crown in 2003 and the title 30 years earlier in 1973. It was also the 10th medal won at these championships, more than any pother nation. Nagy was the hero with 12 massive saves, including the last hammer blow from Drasko Brguljan at the death, which started the celebrations. It came a day after the Hungarian women collected a bronze medal.
Szivos posted his second goal, and 12th of the championship, deep into an extra-man play after a timeout. At 1:39 it broke a short deadlock started with an Aleksandra Ivovic equaliser at 2:04. It was Ivovic’s 20th goal and lifted him level with Croatia’s Sandro Sukno as the leading scorers in Barcelona.
Denes Varga, who opened the scoring and was so instrumental in getting Hungary to the final in a hectic fortnight of competition, was rightly named Most Valuable Player of the Championship.
The bronze-medal match was a rerun of last year’s Olympic final, which Croatia won 8-6. Croatia came up trumps again in a foul-ridden match 10-8. There were six Croatian players who did not see out the match as well as three Italians. Three-goal hero Sandro Sukno was one of the three red-carded players while a Croatian assistant coach also saw red. Sukno finished his team’s highest scorer with 20 goals. Alex Giorgetti was the best for Italy with 13 after his three-goal effort.
Spaniard Xavier Valles said farewell to international water polo after Spain beat Greece 10-8 in the play-off for fifth and sixth, conducted immediately before the gold-medal match. Valles has been a fixture on the national team for more than a decade and he was honoured by his team with the captaincy for the night with regular skipper Felipe Perrone stepping down. He scored his final goal for the go-ahead 4-3 score and was lauded by his team after the match. Teammate Albert Espanol was the star of the match with five goals.
In the classification for seventh and eighth, Serbia trod untouched earth with a 12-7 victory over Australia, repeating the win of the first day (10-7) when they played in the same group. Filip Filipovic netted five goals from six attempts for a championship tally of 16. It was the first time Serbia played outside the top four.
Final classifications:
1. Hungary
2. Montenegro
3. Croatia
4. Italy
5. Spain
6. Greece
7. Serbia
8. Australia
9. United States of America
10. Germany
11. Canada
12. Kazakhstan
13. Romania
14. China
15. South Africa
16. New Zealand
Awards (as selected by media representatives):
Most Valuable Player: Denes Varga (HUN)
Best Goalkeeper: Viktor Nagy (HUN)
Highest goal-scorer: Sandro Sukno (CRO) - 25 goals
Aleksandar Ivovic (MNE) - 25 goals
Media All Star Team:
Goalkeeper: Viktor Nagy (HUN)
Centre Forward: Dusko Pijetlovic (SRB)
Field Players: Pietro Figlioli (ITA)
Aleksandar Ivovic (MNE)
Mladan Janovic (MNE)
Sandro Sukno (CRO)
Denes Varga (HUN)
The seventh day of the swimming competitions in Barcelona was highlighted by three new World Records and five finals distributing medals to 13 countries. The most impressive performance was achieved by Katie Ledecky (USA) in the women’s 800m free, where she set a new global mark of 8:13.86; at the same time, she became the second swimmer in history to win the 400m, 800m and 1500m free (also with WR) in the same edition of the Championships. This previous feat had been achieved by Hannah Stockbauer (GER) also at the Palau Sant Jordi, in 2003. 
In the women’s 50m breaststroke, the final has not been swum yet, and already two new WR were established: in the morning heats, Yulia Efimova (RUS) had clocked 29.78, but the best world standard would only last few hours: in the semis, Ruta Meilutyte (LTU) improved that performance, advancing first to the final with a time of 28.48. The Lithuanian had already set a WR in the 100m breaststroke (1:04.35).
Coming back to the finals, Missy Franklin (USA) naturally imposed her supremacy, in the 200m backstroke, winning in a new Championships record of 2:04.76. In the two fastest events of the evening, Jeanette Ottesen gave the first title of the championships for Denmark, clinching the gold in the women’s 50m butterfly (25.24). In the men’s 50m free, Cesar Cielo (BRA) cried once more on the highest march of the podium, after triumphing in 21.32. 
Finally, in the men’s 100m butterfly, Chad Le Clos (RSA) opened a new “era” in this event (which had been won by US swimmers since 2003), and got the gold in 51.06.
A great variety of countries had their swimmers winning medals in this session: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Hungary, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, and USA. For Trinidad and Tobago (bronze for George Bovell in the men’s 50m free) it was the first ever podium presence in the history of the FINA World Championships.

Ryan Lochte (USA) earned two gold medals in the sixth session of the swimming competition at the 15th FINA World Championships, having now an accumulated number of 23 awards in FINA’s major event since 2005. His latest successes happened in the 200m backstroke, where he easily revalidated his 2011 title, this time in 1:53.79. In the last final of the evening, he was essential in the triumph of his team in the 4x200m free relay. The other two podium presences of Lochte in Barcelona were in the 200m IM (gold) and in the 4x100m free (silver). 
Other highlights of this sixth day included the surprising win of Yulia Efimova (RUS, 2:09.41), in the women’s 200m breaststroke. In the semis, Rikke Pedersen (DEN) had established a new World Record of 2:09.11, but she was slower in the decisive race, getting the silver in 2:20.08. In the men’s 200m breaststroke, Daniel Gyurta, from Hungary, became the first man with three wins in this event, after his golden performances also in 2009 and 2011. His time of 2:07.23 is a new Championships and European record, and is faster than the World Record he had set at the 2012 Olympics, when he won this distance. The current WR holder, Japan’s Akihiro Yamaguchi had a poor performance, finishing seventh.
In the initial final of the day, Cate Campbell (AUS) earned her first world title, by clinching the gold in the 100m free. She left behind her the 2012 Olympic champion Ranomi Kromowidjojo (NED, third) and the world record holder in this event since Rome 2009, Germany’s Britta Steffen (sixth).
In semi-final action, Lochte had still energy to qualify first for the 100m butterfly decisive race, while teammate Missy Franklin was also the fastest in the 200m backstroke. In this event, Federica Pellegrini (ITA) could not reach the final, concluding in ninth. In the men’s 50m free, Florent Manaudou (FRA), the Olympic champion, will swim the final in lane 4, after clocking 21.37 in the semis. Cesar Cielo (BRA), 2011 champion and WR holder, has the third time (21.60), while Australian sprinter James Magnussen was only ninth in 21.79.
Spain completed the business it did not quite finish last year at the London Olympic Games by defeating Australia 8-6 in the gold-medal final of the FINA Women’s Water Polo World Championships at the Bernat Picornell Pool. It was silver behind United States of America in London while Australia claimed bronze. Tonight it was a well-deserved gold as the best team at these championships and now the top nation on the planet for women’s water polo. It was victory for head coach Miki Oca and his resolve and faith in his players, led by the indefatigable Jennifer Pareja, voted the championship’s Most Valuable Player.
Throw is a startling 11-save effort by goalkeeper Laura Ester and she was undoubtedly the best in her class in Barcelona. Spain was confident from the start and managed to out-defend the Aussie Stingers who looked nervous and times and never got into high-scoring mode.
Australia lost star Rowena Webster on three majors before the third break and others followed in a match where both teams received 15 major fouls apiece. Australia had a penalty blocked by Ester and an unexpected unforced error by Stingers goalkeeper Kelsey Wakefield - who was pushing Ester for the best in Barcelona - proved critical when just one behind. Roser Tarrago shot from near halfway and Wakefield tried unsuccessfully to collect with one hand. Never mind, the Spanish defence proved the winner, disrupting Australia at every stage of the match.
In the bronze-medal clash, played as the second match of the first session, Hungary won the first medal for its country (the men will play Montenegro in the men’s final on Saturday) with a 10-8 margin over Russia, who led 3-1 during the first quarter. Hungary started shooting go-ahead goals late in the second period, meaning Russia had to play catch-up water polo. Hungary kept 19-goal Ekaterina Prokofyeva scoreless and Russia kept 18-goal Barbara Bujka off the scoresheet. Her back-up centre forward, though, Ildiko Toth, struck three times.
In the play-off for fifth and sixth, scheduled as the curtain-raiser for the gold-medal final, Olympic and World Cup champion United States of America beat outgoing world champion Greece 15-12 in a penalty shootout after the match was tied at 10-10 by fulltime and 11-11 after two extra periods. USA sent in all four shots in the shootout while Greece missed two. The pair played in the same group and USA won that encounter 12-8. USA stretched its lead over Greece in World Championship play to seven and the win was one place better that Shanghai 2011 when it lost by five goals to Australia. In the play-off for seventh and eighth, Netherlands turned a 5-1 opening quarter into a 12-9 victory with Lieke Klaassen scoring three penalty goals to become the championship’s highest goal-scorer with 25. It was a rematch of the 7-8 classification match at Shanghai 2011, which the Dutch also won.
Immediately after the match, Dutch gold medallists from the Beijing Olympics - Iefke van Belkum and Biurakn Hakhverdian - announced their retirements. This leaves just goalkeeper Ilse van de Meijden and Smit as the remaining gold medallists.
The Media All Star team was named with the championship’s Most Valuable Player, Jennifer Pareja (ESP), leading the group. She was joined by the best goalkeeper, Spain’s Laura Ester, centre forward Barbara Bujka (HUN) and field players Rita Keszthelyi (HUN), Lieke Klaassen (NED), Jennifer Pareja (ESP), Ekaterina Prokofyeva (RUS) and Rowena Webster (AUS).
Final classifications:
1. Spain
2. Australia
3. Hungary
4. Russia
5. United States of America
6. Greece
7. Netherlands
8. Canada
9. China
10. Italy
11. Kazakhstan
12. New Zealand
13. Great Britain
14. Brazil
15. South Africa
16. Uzbekistan
Awards (as selected by media representatives):
Most Valuable Player: Jennifer Pareja (ESP).

Best Goalkeeper:       Laura Ester (ESP).

Highest goal-scorer: Lieke Klaassen (NED) 25
Media All Star Team:
Goalkeeper:               Laura Ester (ESP)
Centre Forward:         Barbara Bujka (HUN)
Field Players:             Rita Keszthelyi (HUN)
Lieke Klaassen (NED)
Jennifer Pareja (ESP)
Ekaterina Prokofyeva (RUS)
Rowena Webster (AUS)



The fifth session of finals was highlighted, in terms of performances, by the new World Record in the women’s 200m breaststroke by Rikke Moller Pedersen (DEN) in the first semi-final of the event. The Danish swimmer clocked an impressive 2:19.11, improving the previous world global mark (2:19.59) set by Rebecca Soni (USA) at the London Olympic Games. Pedersen is naturally the athlete to beat in the decisive race, but Yulia Efimova, from Russia, is not far, with a 2:19.85 effort in the semis. It was the third World Record of the Championships, all in women’s events - Ruta Meilutyte (LTU) in the 100m breaststroke and Katie Ledecky (USA) in the 1500m free are the two other WR performers so far.

In terms of medals, the five finals gave two titles to USA and also two gold medals to China. In all of these events, logics prevailed, with Ryan Lochte confirming his good shape in the men’s 200m IM and getting the third consecutive gold in this distance since 2009. Additionally, it was his first individual podium presence in Barcelona. In the women’s 4x200m free relay, the North Americans were also the favourites and touched home first for the fifth title in the last six editions of these Championships.

From the Chinese side, 2008 Olympic champion Zige Liu is back at the top, with a brilliant triumph in the women’s 200m butterfly, in front  of the audience’s hero Mireia Belmonte and well ahead of her compatriot Liuyang Jiao (sixth) the reigning Olympic winner. In the women’s 50m backstroke, it was another Chinese affair, with WR holder Jing Zhao defeating her teammate and revelation of the current season, Yuanhui Fu.

Last but not least, Australia took the last gold at stake, by winning the always prestigious men’s 100m free. James Magnussen, from Australia, imposed his class in 47.71, and could forget his silver medal in London, behind Nathan Adrian, this time the bronze medallist in the Catalan capital.

Multiple Olympic champion Hungary and Montenegro will do battle for the FINA Men’s Water Polo World Championships at the Bernat Picornell Pool on Saturday. A reshaped Hungary, a far cry from the triple Olympic champions of the new millennium, pushed London Olympic champion Croatia out of title contention with an 11-10 victory built on better extra-man statistics and the stopping power of goalkeeper Viktor Nagy.
The first semifinal produced an upset according to many pundits, except anyone related to Hungary. The Hungarians, under new head coach Tibor Benedek, himself one of the world’s most decorated athletes, grabbed the lead in the second quarter, took the match to 10-7 early in the fourth, watched Croatia level at 10-10 and then celebrated when Denes Varga scored the winner at 1:58.
It was a return to the glory days for the Hungarians and the man with more gold medals than anyone in the history of the game, Tamas Kasas, visited his countrymen in the changing rooms afterwards. Also watching on was the coaching maestro and architect of those three gold medals from 2000, Denes Kemeny.
In the second medal semifinal, Montenegro hammered outgoing world champion Italy into submission with a stunning 10-8 victory engineered on a 3-0 opening burst that became 5-1 at halftime and 9-4 by the final break. You could smell the fear in the Italian camp as Montenegro shunned the form of the Italian team with its five wins, while Montenegro started the championship with a 6-4 loss to Greece.
It was a tournament of toppled champions and Montenegro wanted Italy to join the rest out of the limelight, although Italy will have a chance for some consolation of a lower podium finish when facing Croatia.
In the round of 5-8 semifinals, there was high drama in the clash between Serbia and Spain. The home team won 14-13 in sudden death penalty shootout after the match was tied at 6-6 at fulltime, 8-8 after extra time and 11-11 after the first rotation of five attempts each. The winning goal by Xavier Garcia came on the sixth shot of sudden death.
In the other 5-8 semifinal, Greece had the better of the high-flying Australia 11-9.
Saturday’s final classification round:
15:00 For 7th & 8th Game 41 AUS vs SRB
13.00 For 3rd & 4th Game 43 CRO vs ITA
20.45 For 5th & 6th Game 42 GRE vs ESP
22:15 For 1st & 2nd Game 44 HUN vs MNE


He was already the most iconic athlete in High Diving. His successes at the Cliff Diving World Series, his charisma and his experience (38 years old) had made Orlando Duque, from Colombia, a symbol of this thrilling and challenging discipline. Today, in the port of Barcelona (ESP) he officially became the first men’s world champion in High Diving, after a brilliant final, in which he was able to mix technique, steadiness and harmony in all three dives he performed. Moreover, he also won the first title ever for Colombia in the history of the FINA World Championships. Duque, literally meaning Duke, was this time King in Barcelona!

In the end of the two-day competition – the first two dives for each of the 13 participating athletes in this première were executed on July 29 -, the Colombian star concluded in 590.20, a mere 0.90 points ahead of silver medallist, Gary Hunt, from Great Britain. Hunt, 10 years young than Duque, was the fourth after Monday’s preliminaries, but two very solid dives (DD 3.8 and 6.3!) allowed him to gain the leadership after the fourth round. But a less successful last combination (DD 5.6) dictated his second place. The bronze went to Jonathan Paredes, the 23-year-old athlete from Mexico, who was also third after the first session of heats.
Duque has been competing in this sport for the last 15 years, and was the man to beat in this final, but Hunt, the winner of the World Series in the last three years had also the eyes at the first official world title in High Diving. Presenting the most difficult dives of the final – notably the above mentioned 6.3, an impressive three somersaults and four twists, the highest possible DD in diving -, the British star is known for pushing always further the boundaries of difficulty in the sport he loves.

Paredes is the rookie of the company. At 23, the Mexican diver is evolving very fast and has demonstrated in the past two years that the fear of the height is now just a bad memory.
Missy Franklin (USA) bagged her third Barcelona gold and Chad le Clos (RSA) claimed one more global title that had belonged to Michael Phelps on Day 4 of swimming at the FINA World Championships. Yang Sun (CHN), furthering his quest for a distance freestyle treble, added the 800m crown to the 400m title he won on Day 1, while Cameron van der Burgh made it double gold on the day for South Africa with victory in the men's 50m breaststroke. 
Franklin, golds in the 100m backstroke and 4x100m freestyle relay already in her possession, beat defending champion Federica Pellegrini (ITA) in the 200m freestyle. She seized the lead from Olympic 400m freestyle champion Camille Muffat (FRA) on the second length and won in 1:54.81, with Pellegrini charging through the field to claim silver in 1:55.14 and Muffat taking the bronze in 1:55.72. World record holder Pellegrini, Olympic champion in 2008, said she had had a difficult year and the result was very encouraging for the future. "I'm really surprised with the silver medal," she said.   
Le Clos (RSA), who beat Phelps in the 200m butterfly at the 2012 London Olympics, inherited the great man's world crown in the same event, the American having won it at five of the last six World Championships before retiring after the London Games with a record 18 Olympic gold medals to his name. Le Clos swung past Pawel Korzeniowski (POL) on the last length to win in 1:54.32. Korzeniowski, who won the title when Phelps did not defend it in 2005, took the silver in 1:55.01 and Peng Wu (CHN) the bronze (1:55.09) for his fourth World Championship medal in the event, following a silver and two bronzes.
Australia and Spain will clash on Friday for the FINA Women’s Water Polo World Championship at the Bernat Picornell Pool.
Australia will be seeking a second crown to go with its win in the inaugural women’s World Championships in 1986 - ironically, also in Spain (Madrid) - and Spain will finish higher than before, having done no better than seventh in Melbourne 2007 and 11th in Shanghai two years ago.In London, Spain finished with silver and Australia bronze so two of the top three teams in the world will clash in a real blockbuster.
Australia defeated Russia 9-6 with Nicola Zagame claiming three goals and Spain won a see-sawing encounter with Hungary 13-12 - the winning two goals coming from Laura Lopez in the final quarter.
In the round of 5-8 semifinals, Greece beat Canada 12-8, thanks to four goals from Christina Tsoukala, and Olympic champion United States of America led by three goals early in the final quarter before just holding out Netherlands 12-11.
This means Greece will play USA for fifth and Canada faces Netherlands for seventh.
Friday's final classification round:
15.00 For 7th & 8th Game 41 CAN vs NED
16:30 For 3rd & 4th Game 43 RUS vs HUN
20.45 For 5th & 6th Game 42 GRE vs USA
22.15 For 1st & 2nd Game 44 AUS vs ESP

They were only six, but Cesilie Carlton (USA) was happy as she had won against 60 other competitors! The North American (who suffers from vertigo!) high diver became the first world champion in this discipline, getting the best accumulated results after the three rounds of dives on this hot, sunny and windy Tuesday in Barcelona (ESP). Carlton won the competition in 211.60, while Ginger Huber (USA, silver, 206.70) and Anna Bader (GER, bronze, 203.90) completed the podium of this historical event.

This novelty at the FINA World Championships is almost a premi̬re for these divers also Рin fact, besides the shows and exhibitions, the most known competition of High Diving are the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series, an annual circuit with several legs around the world. But, until a couple of weeks ago, these series were only open to men. On last July 14, in Malcesina (ITA), four of the six finallists in Barcelona (Tara Hyer Tira and Huber from USA, Bader, and Stephanie de Lima from Canada) made their debut in this circuit.
On this July 30, they reached the top of the world, diving from the 20m platform constructed in the port of Barcelona. The final was held in three rounds – the first with a maximum DD of 2.6, the second with a DD of 3.4, and an unlimited DD in the third combination. Bader was the provisional leader after the first set of dives, while Huber was the best after the second round. Performing a well-executed DD 3.3 dive, Carlton – whose characteristic is to jump quite fast once she arrives to the end of the platform (she would later explain that is because of her vertigo) – managed to secure the gold in a convincing way.

The winner of this landmark event in Barcelona is from San Antonio, Texas, has been a springboard diver, and started practising High Diving in 2009, much because of her husband, himself a high diver. Her teammate Huber is an entertainment performer at Sea World, San Diego, and the highest she dives from in her shows is 7m. She is a former junior diver at national level, and at 38 she is the veteran of the competition.
Sixteen-year-old Katie Ledecky smashed the 1500 metres freestyle world record on a great day for the USA which brought three world crowns for the Stars and Stripes team. Ledecky prevailed in a monumental duel with Denmark's defending champion Lotte Friis, while Missy Franklin and Matt Grevers grabbed the golds in their respective 100m backstroke finals. Fellow Olympic champion Ruta Meilutyte, born just two days after Ledecky, came tantalisingly close to her own second world record in two days but still celebrated an historic first world title in the 50m pool for independent Lithuania in the 100m breaststroke.
Ledecky, who won the 400m freestyle on Day 1, and Friis fought neck and neck in the 30-length pool marathon, the American edging clear in the final 100 metres to win in 15:36.53. Friis, world silver medallist in 2009 and champion in 2011, was also inside the 15:42.54 world mark set by Kate Ziegler in Mission Viejo, California, on June 17, 2007. Lauren Boyle (NZL), Barcelona 400m freestyle bronze medallist, came through strongly in the later stages to claim another bronze in 15:44.71.
Meilutyte finished a shade outside the world record 1:04.35 she clocked in the 100m breaststroke semi-finals, sweeping to the gold in 1:04.42, a time still inside the 1:04.45 world mark which had stood to Jessica Hardy (USA) since August 2009. Yuliya Efimova (RUS), world silver medallist in 2009, was the only swimmer to finish within a second of the Lithuanian, taking the silver in 1:05.02. Hardy, world silver medallist in 2005, scooped the bronze in1:05.52.
Hungary will play Olympic champion Croatia and Montenegro will face Italy in Thursday’s semifinals of the FINA Men’s Water Polo World Championships at the Bernat Picornell Pool.
It was a day of drama in the quarterfinals today as each team had to battle for the right to contest the semifinals. Hungary came through the opening match, turning a 3-2 halftime lead to 5-3 at the final break and 9-3 at full time, thanks to a better extra-man scoring statistic.
Croatia was two goals down to Australia - 5-3 - with four minutes remaining to force the 5-5 draw and go to extra time, drawing the first period 1-1 and winning the last 1-0. Australia missed a classic victory when Richard Campbell fired a wide open two-metre shot into the upright 18 seconds from regulation time and then Australia fumbled the last-gasp chance to level to enforce a penalty shootout. Croatia had survived by the skin of its teeth despite the fact that Australia used an illegal fourth timeout with one of the earlier breaks not recorded by the secretary.
Montenegro upstaged World League champion and Olympic bronze medallist Serbia 9-8 with a goal 70 seconds from the final buzzer. Serbia was the heavy favourite but Montenegro battled all game to level and then win the match in the final quarter. Aleksandar Ivovic was the hero with his second goal of the match and 15th for the championship. It will be the first time Serbia has not played for a medal at this level. Montenegro was third in this year’s World League and seventh in Shanghai two years ago.
In the final match of the night, Italy opened the scoring, fended off Spain twice - 2-2 and 3-3 - and won the match on the strength of a single Pietro Figlioli goal in the second half for 4-3. It was a passionate match played in front of about 5000 spectators in which one player gained an injured eyebrow and there were plenty of other stoppages for accidental dangerous contact.
The round of 5-8 now comprises a competition of epic proportions considering all four teams have played at their highest level for much of the championship and all would be disappointed at not shooting for medals.

Thursday’s semifinals:
Round 5-8:
15:30 37. GRE vs AUS
17:00 38. SRB vs ESP
Round 1-4:
20:15 39. HUN vs CRO
21:45 40. MNE vs ITA


Source: FINA Newsletter


THANK YOU BARCELONA! SEE YOU IN KAZAN!
 
Shortly after the conclusion of the swimming finals, the Closing Ceremony of the 15th FINA World Championships gathered all the flags of the 180 participating countries in Barcelona (ESP), while the FINA flag was officially given to the city of Kazan (RUS), the next organiser of FINA’s major event in 2015. 

“We come to the end of a great Aquatic Festival here in Barcelona! During two weeks, our best athletes performed at the highest level with remarkable results. My sincere thank you to all of them! The venues, the Host Broadcaster, the spectators, the organisation and the hosts’ hospitality were amazing”, said FINA President Dr. Julio C. Maglione. “The 15th FINA World Championships has increased the importance and value of all our aquatic disciplines and FINA brand gained more exposure and prestige. I would like to express our sincere gratitude to all Spanish and Catalan authorities, to the Organising Committee Barcelona 2013, to the Royal Spanish Swimming Federation, and to the volunteers for their contribution, support and excellence in staging these 15th FINA World Championships here in Barcelona. These Championships were unforgettable!” added Dr. Maglione.

Source: www.bcn2013.com


POSTFACTUM : UNPLEASANT CONVERSATION BY SMS AFTER  FINA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2013 WITH MR. HEM KIRY – CAMBODIAN NATIONAL TEAM COACH
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Our Readers Geography on 29.07.13:
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Aquatics Cambodia Some Selected Articles Links
2013
Cambodian National Team at 4th Asian Indoor & Martial Arts Games 2013 in Incheon, Korea: New National Record in Swimming!
Cambodian National Swimming Championship Long Course 2013
Duathlon (Running + Cycling + Running) Competition in Phnom Penh 28 Apr 2013
Calendar 2013: Swimming & Aquathlon Competitions & Cambodian National Swimming Team in International Meets 2013.
Swimming Terminology
CULTURAL EVENTS CORNER: Irrawaddy Literary Festival & Yoma FMI Short Story Contest in Yangon, Myanmar
CULTURAL EVENTS CORNER: Invitation for Shwaas band (India) Concert
CULTURAL EVENTS CORNER: Piano & Violin Duo Recital Concert in Intercontinental Hotel, Phnom Penh
2012
Breaking News: New Cambodian National Record at 50m Freestyle at World Championship Short Course 2012!

CAMBODIA NATIONAL SWIMMING TEAM IN PICTURES & FILMS 2009-2013
http://aquaticscambodia.blogspot.com/2012/12/cambodia-national-swimming-team-in.html
Pictures & Films: Cambodia National Swimming Team in 11th FINA World Swimming Championship SC 2012
CULTURAL EVENTS CORNER: Photos: 3rd Cambodia International Film Festival
CAMBODIA National Swimming Men’s Records’ Times, Official FINA Standard, as of 31.08.12 Long Course 50 m Swimming Pool
CAMBODIA National Swimming Men’s Records’ Times, Official FINA Standard, as of 30.06.13 Short Course 25 m Swimming Pool
Cambodia National Team at World SC Swim Championship 2012: Issue N12. 18 Dec 2012: Our Results: Analysis
Cambodia National Team at World Short Course Swim Championship 2012 in Istanbul, Turkey: Issue N8./ 13 Dec 2012: 2nd Day of Meet!
Cambodia National Team at World Short Course Swim Championship 2012 in Istanbul, Turkey: Issue N7./ 12 Dec 2012: 1st Day of Meet!
Phnom Penh Ballet School Set for First Performance
Cambodian National Swim Team Goes to World Championship Short Course 2012 in Turkey
First Online Aquatics Sport Magazine in English in Cambodia
http://aquaticscambodia.blogspot.com/2012/12/first-online-aquatics-sport-magazine-in_5721.html


 SELECTED ARTICLES ABOUT SPORT DEVELOPMENT IN CAMBODIA & SOME COMMENTS BY AQUATICS CAMBODIA

 
Beijing grants training access

Phnom Penh Post Newspaper
Wed, 24 July 2013

China has responded favourably to a request from the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia to let some of the Kingdom’s athletes in select disciplines make use of the high-tech training facilities in Beijing to prepare for this year’s SEA Games in Myanmar in December.
“We have a memorandum of understanding with China, and some of our athletes trained in Beijing before the London Olympics [last year],” NOCC secretary-general Vath Chamroeun told the Post.
“Members of our swimming, table tennis, athletics, badminton and one or two other teams will now be able to train in China.”
Meanwhile, Cambodian wrestlers will get a big boost under an Olympic Solidarity-funded training program to be conducted by internationally reputed coach Stephen Kazarian, an Armenian veteran of nearly a dozen Olympics and 65 male and female World Championships.
Now living in Switzerland, Kazarian is no stranger to Cambodian wrestling, having coached the national team way back in the late 1960s. He was back in Phnom Penh after a 42-year break in 2010 to conduct an International Olympic Committee technical course for wrestling coaches.
A group of 20 national probables will go through a training stint under Kazarian in two stages. The first camp will be held next month, with the second and final one planned for early next year.
“We are very happy to have a coach of Kazarian’s stature and experience helping our wrestlers. Wrestling has been part of our country’s tradition,” said Vath Chamroeun, himself a competitive wrestler in his younger days who represented Cambodia at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Golf coaching course hits bunker
A technical course sanctioned by the IOC for as many as 25 Cambodian golf coaches has seemingly run into a logistical problem and may be indefinitely delayed or even cancelled.
Golf’s world governing body, the International Golf Federation, has indicated to the NOCC that it is not in a position to provide an expert to conduct the course.
“The course has to be conducted by an expert sent by the international golf body. This is an IOC stipulation. It is a huge disappointment for us,” Vath Chamroeun said.
Golf is making its return to the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in 2016.


Don’t treat the injured as outcasts, Teichman says


     Phnom Penh Post Newspaper
Fri, 9 August 2013
German sports therapist Joerg Teichman has sent out a strong message to Cambodian coaches that rehabilitating an injured player is as vital as fine-tuning their playing skills.
In his closing remarks yesterday at the end of a two-day seminar on knee and ankle injuries in sport and their prevention he conducted at the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia headquarters, Teichman told an audience of several national coaches and their assistants not to treat injured players as “outcasts”.
“What an injured player needs is your attention and care, and you have a big responsibility towards the injured just as you have in enhancing their performances,” said Teichman, who has spent well over three decades in Asia, the last 16 years as head of rehabilitation at the Malaysian National Institute of Sports.
“Injuries are part of a sportsman’s life, and you have to deal with them. Always remember a player is injured not sick. And you can do something about it to help fast recovery and, in some cases, prevent aggravation.”
Frustration, Teichman contended, would normally be the first reaction from an anxious coach and a suffering player. But the follow-up should be quick acceptance and treatment leading to progress.
“Instead of letting an injured player sit at home and brood over his misery, coaches should make him feel that he is still part of the team. This immensely helps the healing process,” added the German.
“[The] body adopts to training – always keep this in mind, The same level and same intensity of training will not work,” he told the gathering, calling on the participants to keep assessing the biological limitations of the players while changing training patterns for better results.
Later, in an interview with the Post, Teichman described his two-day seminar as just the beginning.
“Coaches should develop special knowledge of sports medicine and sciences, which is fast evolving, and I am glad that Cambodia will soon have a full-fledged Sports Medicine and Science Centre,” he said.
NOCC secretary-general Vath Chamroeun said they were “extremely grateful to Teichman for voluntarily coming forward to help our coaches get a better grasp of a complex subject like sports medicine and its applications. This was indeed an eye opener for our coaches.
“We need his expertise and experience to guide us through. This is a priority sector for us and we expect bigger budgetary allocations for sports medicine and sciences.”



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 Last Updated: 28.08.13