The women's 100 metre breaststroke event at the 2000 Summer Olympics took place on 17–18 September at the Sydney International Aquatic Centre in Sydney, Australia.[1][2]
| Women's 100 metre breaststroke at the Games of the XXVII Olympiad | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | Sydney International Aquatic Centre | ||||||||||||
| Date | 17 September 2000 (heats & semifinals) 18 September 2000 (final) | ||||||||||||
| Competitors | 44 from 37 nations | ||||||||||||
| Winning time | 1:07.05 AM | ||||||||||||
| Medalists | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
At only 16 years of age, U.S. swimmer Megan Quann fulfilled her merciless prediction by knocking off South Africa's defending Olympic champion Penny Heyns in the event. Coming from third at the final turn, she surged powerfully past the champion over the last 25 metres to snatch the gold medal in a new American record of 1:07.05, just a small fraction closer to an Olympic standard.[3][4] Australia's overwhelming favorite Leisel Jones, who just turned 15, roared back from fifth place on the final stretch to take home the silver in 1:07.49. Heyns, who was struggling with her form in the prelims and semifinals, seized off a strong lead under a world-record pace (31.10), but ended up only with a bronze in a time of 1:07.55. Meanwhile, Sarah Poewe, the fastest qualifier for the final, trailed behind her teammate by three-tenths of a second in 1:07.85.[5][6][7]
Outside the 1:08-club, Hungary's Ágnes Kovács finished fifth in 1:08.09, and was followed in sixth by Japan's Masami Tanaka with a time of 1:08.37. Aussie favorite Tarnee White (1:09.09) and 31-year-old Sylvia Gerasch (1:09.86), a product of the old East German system, closed out the field.[7]
Notable swimmers missed out the top 8 final, featuring Quann's teammate Staciana Stitts, who had a poor start on the morning prelims with an eighteenth-place effort; and Angola's Nádia Cruz, the first for her nation to compete in all four editions of the Games since 1988.[8]
Records edit
Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.
| World record |  Penny Heyns (RSA) |
1:06.52 | Sydney, Australia | 23 August 1999 | [9] |
| Olympic record |  Penny Heyns (RSA) |
1:07.02 | Atlanta, United States | 21 July 1996 | [9] |
Results edit
Heats edit
Semifinals edit
Semifinal 1 edit
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Sarah Poewe | South Africa |
1:07.48 | Q |
| 2 | 3 | Ágnes Kovács |  Hungary |
1:07.79 | Q, NR |
| 3 | 4 | Penny Heyns | South Africa |
1:08.33 | Q |
| 4 | 6 | Sylvia Gerasch |  Germany |
1:09.33 | Q |
| 5 | 2 | Christin Petelski |  Canada |
1:09.54 | |
| 6 | 7 | Rhiannon Leier | Canada |
1:09.63 | |
| 7 | 1 | Simone Karn | Germany |
1:09.85 | |
| 8 | 8 | Madelon Baans |  Netherlands |
1:10.44 |
Semifinal 2 edit
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Megan Quann |  United States |
1:07.79 | Q |
| 2 | 5 | Leisel Jones |  Australia |
1:08.03 | Q |
| 3 | 3 | Tarnee White | Australia |
1:08.61 | Q |
| 4 | 6 | Masami Tanaka |  Japan |
1:09.04 | Q |
| 5 | 2 | Brigitte Becue |  Belgium |
1:09.47 | |
| 6 | 1 | Qi Hui |  China |
1:09.81 | |
| 7 | 7 | Svitlana Bondarenko |  Ukraine |
1:09.84 | |
| 8 | 8 | Nataša Kejžar |  Slovenia |
1:10.66 |
Final edit
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
5 | Megan Quann | United States |
1:07.05 | AM |
 |
6 | Leisel Jones | Australia |
1:07.49 | OC |
 |
2 | Penny Heyns | South Africa |
1:07.55 | |
| 4 | 4 | Sarah Poewe | South Africa |
1:07.85 | |
| 5 | 3 | Ágnes Kovács | Hungary |
1:08.09 | |
| 6 | 1 | Masami Tanaka | Japan |
1:08.37 | |
| 7 | 7 | Tarnee White | Australia |
1:09.09 | |
| 8 | 8 | Sylvia Gerasch | Germany |
1:09.86 |
References edit
- ^ "Swimming schedule". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 14 September 2000. Retrieved 14 May 2013.
- ^ "100 meters Breaststroke, Women". Olympedia. Archived from the original on 25 November 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
- ^ "U.S. Swimmers Krayzelburg, Quann Win Gold". ABC News. 18 September 2000. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
- ^ Robertson, Linda (18 September 2000). "Krayzelburg, Quann Pan Olympic Gold". ABC News. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
- ^ "U.S. teenager wins 100 breaststroke". ESPN. 18 September 2000. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- ^ Lemke, Gary (18 September 2000). "Penny third as Quann triumphs". Independent Online. South Africa. Retrieved 18 June 2013.
- ^ a b Whitten, Phillip (18 September 2000). "Olympic Day 3 Finals (100 Breast, 100 Back M, 100 Back W, 200 Free)". Swimming World Magazine. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- ^ Whitten, Phillip (17 September 2000). "Olympic Prelims: Day Two". Swimming World Magazine. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- ^ a b c "Sydney 2000: Swimming – Women's 100m Breaststroke Heats" (PDF). Sydney 2000. LA84 Foundation. pp. 261–262. Retrieved 17 June 2013.