July 2001 Sport News Headlines

FUKUOKA - Ian Thorpe avenged his defeat by Pieter van den Hoogenband in last year's Olympic final by smashing his own world record to win the men's 200 metres freestyle title at the world championships on Wednesday.

The Australian teenager blasted away from his Dutch rival on the final lap to claim his fourth gold medal and third world record in four days with a time of one minute 44,06 seconds.

"What I try to do is do the best that I can. That's what I think everyone should do, no matter what level they're at," Thorpe said.

"I was not worrying about what everyone else was doing, I was concerning myself about myself."

Van den Hoogenband, who beat Thorpe to win the 200 title at the Sydney Games, led by a whisker through the first half of the race as the Dutchman and the 18-year-old Australian pulled a body-length clear of the rest.

horpe hit the front by the final turn and then produced an astonishing kick down the last length of the 50-metre pool to clock one minute 44,06 seconds, inside the 1:44,69 mark he set at the Australian championships in Hobart in March this year.

Van den Hoogenband had to settle for the silver in 1:45,81.

American Klete Keller took the bronze in 1:47,10.

"Ian was in such good shape tonight. I was in good condition as well but not as good as I was in Sydney," van den Hoogenband said.

"He was terrific and we have to respect that. I just swam as fast as I could ... but that's swimming, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose."

Thorpe is only the second swimmer to win three individual titles at a world championships following American Tim Shaw in 1975.

He still has the 100 metres freestyle to go as well as two relays as he bids to win a total of seven golds.

The 18-year-old, who won three gold medals at last year's Olympics, broke his own world records in retaining his 400 freestyle title on Sunday and winning the inaugural 800 freestyle on Tuesday.

He also anchored Australia's victorious 4x100 freestyle relay on Sunday. - Nampa-Reuters