Popov, a name that once resounded in the world of swimming, a hegemon who ruled the world of swimming for the entire 90s, did not even enter the final of the men's 100m freestyle this time!

Although Popov has been pulled down from the position of "world's No. 1 flying fish" by Hockenband since the Sydney Olympics four years ago, this has not affected the influence of the "swimming czar" on the international stage.

As long as Popov competes, he is the biggest contender for the sprint freestyle title. Even today's "No. 1 Flying Fish" Hockenband must be very cautious when facing Popov, and the slightest negligence may be overtaken by the other party.

Although Popov, who is nearly 33 years old since the beginning of this year, has not performed so well in international competitions, he still won the men's 50m freestyle championship at the European Championships.

And this time in the Athens Olympics, although no one thinks that Popov still has a chance to win the championship, there is still a great chance of winning a medal. But what everyone didn't expect was that Popov didn't even make it to the final this time.

Heroes are in the twilight......

After seeing his results, Popov also waved goodbye to the audience in frustration, and the audience and media reporters also gave warm applause to the veteran who participated in the Olympic Games for the fourth time.

……

And what surprised everyone even more was that Guo Zizhao swam a time of 48.18 seconds!

Although Guo Zizhao also swam 48.20 seconds a few months ago, it was after all swam at the domestic trials in China. This result is not very credible because it has not been tested in international competitions.

However, today, Guo Zizhao equaled this year's world best under the eyes of the world, which has to make everyone feel astonished.

Could it be that Guo Zizhao really wants to win the men's 100-meter and 50-meter freestyle swimming championships in this Olympic Games? Judging from today's semi-finals alone, Guo Zizhao really has this strength!

Everyone has set their eyes on Hockenband, the "world's No. 1 flying fish", and now the only one who can stop Guo Zizhao may be the Dutchman.

And Thorpe's eyes when he looked at Guo Zizhao were full of jealousy. 48.18 seconds, I didn't expect Guo Zizhao's real strength to be so amazing, nearly 0.5 seconds faster than his best results. Could it be that the scene that lost to Guo Zizhao four years ago will be repeated again?

Hum...... After waiting for the winner of the 200m freestyle final, I will do my best against you tomorrow!

And Hockenband's heart is also burning with a fire of war. Guo Zizhao, let you be proud for a while today, and after I defend the 200-meter freestyle championship first, tomorrow night, we will compete again!

。。。。。。

At 7:45 p.m., the final of the men's 200-meter freestyle officially sounded.

Three of the biggest names in swimming today, Thorpe, Hockenband and Phelps gathered at the same time for this final.

"Torpedo" Ian. Thorpe, Australia's most famous "flying fish", has dominated the men's 200m and 400m freestyle events in the international swimming world since 1998.

With the exception of losing to Hockenband in the men's 200m freestyle at the Sydney Olympics, Thorpe has won almost every major international event over the years. At the World Championships, the Commonwealth Games, and the Pan Pacific Championships, Thorpe proved his dominance in freestyle with one championship after another.

At the same time, Thorpe also has top international performances in the men's 100m and 800m freestyle events. It can be said that Thorpe is an all-rounder in the sprint and middle distance freestyle events.

And the day before yesterday, Thorpe had just defended his Olympic title in the men's 400m freestyle, and now it will be time to regain the Olympic title in the 200m.

……

Hockenband, the "Dutch Flying Fish", is the "world's No. 1 Flying Fish" and the strongest presence in the short-distance freestyle event. Today's world record holder in the men's 100m and 200m freestyle.

At the Sydney Olympics four years ago, Hockenband won gold medals in the men's 100m and 200m freestyle, and set new world records in both events. At the same time, in the men's 50-meter freestyle event, he also won a bronze medal.

Although Hockenband has never won a gold medal at the World Championships in recent years, he has achieved remarkable results at the European Championships. He has always defended his title of "the world's No. 1 flying fish".

……

As for Phelps, he is the American "swimming prodigy" who has risen in the past two years. And it's an all-round fighter for sprint swimming!

At the 2001 World Championships in Fukuoka, at the age of 16, Phelps won the men's 200m butterfly and broke the world record. After that, the swimming prodigy started to get out of control.

In addition to the 100m and 200m butterfly events, Phelps also showed amazing strength in the individual medley events in the 200m and 400m. At last year's World Swimming Championships in Barcelona, Phelps won 4 golds and 2 silvers in one fell swoop, and broke the world record 5 times.

At the beginning of the Athens Olympics, Phelps even threatened to win gold medals in eight of the events he competed in. However, after winning just one bronze medal in the men's 4x100m freestyle relay the day before yesterday, Phelps changed his goal to seven gold medals in hopes of equalling the record of seven Olympic gold medals for legendary American swimmer Spitz.

It's just that Phelps's wish is still ridiculed by the audience. Only Guo Zizhao knew that at the Beijing Olympics four years later, Phelps surpassed this record and topped the swimming world with eight Olympic gold medals.

……

“take your mark……”

"Beep!"

With the sound of the starting order, the final of the men's 200m freestyle began.

After coming out of the water, Hockenband quickly took the lead with his powerful explosiveness. Phelps is also tall and long-armed, a close second. Thorpe, on the other hand, followed behind Phelps unhurriedly.

In the cheers and cheers of all the spectators, the three masters led all the way and slowly opened the gap between them and other players. However, at the end of the first 100 meters, it was still Hockenband who held the first position, followed by Phelps and Thorpe.

Just when everyone thought that Hockenband would defend the title, Thorpe, who had strong endurance, began to slowly exert his strength. Hum...... He is the king of the sport, and the defeat at the last Olympics will not be repeated.

With his excellent turning skills, Thorpe caught up with the young Phelps after the last turn. Through the splash of water brought by his arm, Thorpe observed that Hockenband's lead was only half an arm's length away.

Hehe...... It's fast, it's fast, and among these people, his stamina is the strongest. In addition to the 200m and 400m, he can swim 800m, while Hockenband can only swim 200m! This time, he will regain the lost title at the Sydney Olympics!

……

It's past the central marker, and there's still the last 25 meters, it's time, accelerate, accelerate...... Sprints, sprints......

Amid the huge cheers of the surrounding spectators, Thorpe launched a powerful sprint in the last 25 meters or so! With super stamina, Thorpe only needed less than 10 meters to catch up with Hockenband.

Accelerate, accelerate...... Sprints, sprints...... Go ahead and win this gold medal! Only by winning this gold medal can I be qualified to talk to Guo Zizhao on an equal footing! If Guo Zizhao can swim the world best this year in the 100 meters, then he can break the world record in the 200 meters!

I'm going to prove it to everybody, I'm Ian. Thorpe is the best freestyle swimmer in the world!

Acceleration, sprint, ...... Fast, fast...... How fast can I ......

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Thorpe finally overtook Hockenband at around 15 meters, and the distance was widened wider and wider. Finally, when Thorpe touched the wall, he was already nearly half a body length ahead of Hockenband!

"Torpedo" Thorpe used a hearty victory to snatch back the Olympic gold medal he had lost from the hands of the Dutch!

1:44.71!

Thorpe not only defeated Hockenband, but also broke the world record of 1:45.35 set by the opponent at the Sydney Olympics!

There are a lot of things to do in the past two days of vacation, and the writing is a bit messy, please forgive me