For the resumption of long course competitions, there has already been fast swimming with Florent Manaudou going under 22 seconds in the 50m freestyle (21.89). The first stage of the Golden Tour was marked by Katinka Hosszu’s frenzy (8 victories) and strong performances from Stravius, Lacourt, and Metella.
He is back and in great shape. Two months after his impressive performance at the Doha short course World Championships, Florent Manaudou made his return to a 50m pool. Tired from a rigorous training camp, the 2012 London Olympic champion won the 50m freestyle with an excellent time of 21.89 (personal best 21.32). Added at the last moment to the 4x100m relay, the Marseille swimmer clocked an excellent 48.68 split. The rest of the competition was more challenging with an elimination in the 100m backstroke on Saturday and a finger injury on the last day that forced him to withdraw from the 50m backstroke.
The phenomenon Katinka Hosszu struck again. The 25-year-old Hungarian competed in 16 races over three days, winning 8 events (50m freestyle, 200m freestyle, 400m freestyle, 800m freestyle, 200m backstroke, 100m backstroke, 200m breaststroke, and 200m individual medley) and securing 5 other podium finishes. Three victories in 1 hour and 30 minutes on Friday, four in 2 hours on Saturday, and three podium finishes on Sunday, the Hungarian storm swept everything. “Iron Lady,” her nickname, once again proved she is one of the stars of international meets.
Absent from Doha, Jérémy Stravius had not competed since the European Championships in Berlin last August, and he made a strong impression on his return. Beaten by Manaudou in the 50m freestyle, he still achieved a good time of 22.74. On Saturday, the Amiens swimmer won the 200m freestyle and confirmed his good form on Sunday with a victory in the 100m freestyle, finishing under 50 seconds (49.51).
The Marseille team, present in large numbers at this Nice stage, dominated the podiums. Giacomo Perez Dortona, the top breaststroker, won the 100m breaststroke before being narrowly beaten in the 50m (2nd place). Butterfly specialist Mehdy Metella claimed victories in his favored distances (50m butterfly and 100m butterfly) and understandably lagged behind in the 200m butterfly (8th place). As for Camille Lacourt, who was ill the first two days, he had to settle for 8th place in the 100m backstroke and withdrew on Saturday. He made a strong comeback on Sunday with an easy victory in the 50m backstroke, clocking 24.89, a time acclaimed by specialists as impressive.
Photo credit: Sylvain Mustapic
