| Men's 200 metre breaststroke at the Games of the XXVII Olympiad | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | Sydney International Aquatic Centre | ||||||||||||
| Date | September 19, 2000 (heats & semifinals) September 20, 2000 (final) | ||||||||||||
| Competitors | 49 from 44 nations | ||||||||||||
| Winning time | 2:10.87 EU | ||||||||||||
| Medalists | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Swimming at the 2000 Summer Olympics | ||
|---|---|---|
| | ||
| Freestyle | ||
| 50 m | men | women |
| 100 m | men | women |
| 200 m | men | women |
| 400 m | men | women |
| 800 m | women | |
| 1500 m | men | |
| Backstroke | ||
| 100 m | men | women |
| 200 m | men | women |
| Breaststroke | ||
| 100 m | men | women |
| 200 m | men | women |
| Butterfly | ||
| 100 m | men | women |
| 200 m | men | women |
| Individual medley | ||
| 200 m | men | women |
| 400 m | men | women |
| Freestyle relay | ||
| 4 × 100 m | men | women |
| 4 × 200 m | men | women |
| Medley relay | ||
| 4 × 100 m | men | women |
The men's 200 metre breaststroke event at the 2000 Summer Olympics took place on 19–20 September at the Sydney International Aquatic Centre in Sydney, Australia. [1]
Domenico Fioravanti emerged as a major force on the international swimming after effortlessly winning his second gold at these Games. He maintained a lead from start to finish and posted a European record of 2:10.87, the second-fastest of all time, making him the first ever swimmer in Olympic history to strike a breaststroke double. [2] [3] South Africa's Terence Parkin, a deaf mute since birth, enjoyed the race of his life to take a silver medal in an African record of 2:12.50. [4] Fioravanti's fellowman Davide Rummolo gave Italy a further reason to celebrate, as he powered home with the bronze in 2:12.73. [5] [6]
Acknowledging a massive cheer from the home crowd, Australia's Regan Harrison swam his lifetime best, but finished outside the podium by 15-hundredths of a second in 2:12.88. Czech Republic's Daniel Málek pulled off a fifth-place finish in a national record of 2:13.20, while Kyle Salyards, the only U.S. swimmer in the final, earned a sixth spot with a time of 2:13.27. France's Yohann Bernard (2:13.31) and another Aussie Ryan Mitchell (2:14.00) rounded out the finale. [5] Notable swimmers failed to reach the top 8 final, featuring Hungary's Norbert Rózsa, the defending Olympic champion, who placed thirteenth (2:14.67), and Canada's Morgan Knabe, who had the fastest 100-metre split, but faded badly on the final lap to place tenth (2:14.01). [7]
Shortly before the next Olympics, Fioravanti was forced to retire from swimming after failing a routine medical test carried by the Italian National Olympic Committee. Tests revealed that he was diagnosed with a genetic heart anomaly. [8] [9]
Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.
| World record | 2:10.16 | Barcelona, Spain | 29 July 1992 | [10] | |
| Olympic record | 2:10.16 | Barcelona, Spain | 29 July 1992 | [10] |
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Kyle Salyards | 2:13.38 | Q | |
| 2 | 4 | Daniel Málek | 2:13.46 | Q, NR | |
| 3 | 7 | Yohann Bernard | 2:13.48 | Q | |
| 4 | 2 | Terence Parkin | 2:13.57 | Q | |
| 5 | 8 | Dmitry Komornikov | 2:13.95 | ||
| 6 | 5 | Maxim Podoprigora | 2:14.20 | ||
| 7 | 3 | Stéphan Perrot | 2:14.59 | ||
| 8 | 6 | Martin Gustavsson | 2:15.23 |
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Domenico Fioravanti | 2:12.37 | Q, NR | |
| 2 | 4 | Davide Rummolo | 2:13.23 | Q | |
| 3 | 6 | Regan Harrison | 2:13.75 | Q | |
| 4 | 3 | Ryan Mitchell | 2:13.87 | Q | |
| 5 | 5 | Morgan Knabe | 2:14.01 | ||
| 6 | 7 | Norbert Rózsa | 2:14.67 | ||
| 7 | 1 | Akira Hayashi | 2:15.16 | ||
| 8 | 8 | Alexander Tkachev | 2:16.90 |
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Domenico Fioravanti | 2:10.87 | EU | ||
| 7 | Terence Parkin | 2:12.50 | AF | ||
| 5 | Davide Rummolo | 2:12.73 | |||
| 4 | 1 | Regan Harrison | 2:12.88 | OC | |
| 5 | 6 | Daniel Málek | 2:13.20 | NR | |
| 6 | 3 | Kyle Salyards | 2:13.27 | ||
| 7 | 2 | Yohann Bernard | 2:13.31 | ||
| 8 | 8 | Ryan Mitchell | 2:14.00 |