DUBAI // The "Iron Lady" has shown her mettle again. Winner of seven gold medals in the opening leg of the Fina Swimming World Cup series at Doha last week, Katinka Hosszu finished the second leg at Dubai with eight wins and two new world records.
The Hungarian bettered the 100m IM world record of 57.25 seconds she had set at Doha with a stunning swim of 56.86 in the morning heats.
It was her fifth world record in four days of competition after she had set three at Doha.
“I’m really surprised at the time,” Hosszu said. “Maybe I shouldn’t have gone so fast. I am pretty happy and amazed how I did because I never thought I will be so close to the world record in so many races. So I can definitely see that I am improving. It’s really exciting to see that what I am doing is right.”
In the evening session, Hosszu came back to top the podium 100m and 400m IMs, 100m backstroke and the 200m butterfly but, probably tired by the final race of the meet, she was only third in the 50m butterfly behind Inge Dekker and Marieke D’Cruz.
“Honestly, I feel pretty tired and really hungry,” she said. “I think I am going to have a huge dinner.”
Hosszu, 25, will not have much time to rest her exhausted limbs as she leaves for Singapore today, for a swimming meet on Friday.
“I will be back in training after that,” she said. “There is not much time to have a break because the European championships were so late and we have to start preparing for the short course world championships, which will be in Doha.
“After that, it will be January and the long course season. So I don’t think I will be taking a big break before Rio [2016 Olympics].”
Velimir Stjepanovic, winner of the 200m and 400m double at the European championships last month, is also looking forward to December’s world championships after being upstaged by Australian Thomas Fraser-Holmes in those events here.
The Serbian was in the lead in both races, but Fraser-Holmes edged past him on the final lap.
“I always knew Fraser-Holmes would have a much faster last 50 than I did, so I just tried to shake it out hard,” Stjepanovic said.
“Didn’t work out for me, it was close. It would probably have been an even closer race if we were next to each other, but when we are on the opposite sides of the pool, it’s hard to see, especially with my eyesight.
“There’s still time though. The world championship is coming up in December, so that’s the main one. As long as I am ready for that, it’s going to be good.”
Fraser-Holmes, who won the 400m IM and 400m freestyle on the opening day, failed to complete the 200m freestyle and IM double yesterday, finishing second behind the South African star Chad le Clos in the individual medley.
Le Clos finished the Dubai leg with four gold medals from four events and, like Hosszu, was awarded $50,000 for winning Cluster 1 – the Doha and Dubai legs – of the seven-stop World Cup series.
Dutchwoman Dekker also had four wins from four events in Dubai and was the only woman to stop Hosszu from winning gold here.
“Hosszu must have been exhausted having competed in so many races here, but I thought she did well to win all her races,” Dekker said.
Compliments for Hosszu also came from American Caitlin Leverenz, who shared the podium with the Hungarian in three races.
“We were neck-and-neck not so long ago, but she has certainly stepped it up,” Leverenz said. “It’s obvious from the records she is breaking so regularly. That’s good for the competition. The others will have to raise their levels as well.”
arizvi@thenational.ae
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