FINA Live Blog :Swimming, Day 8 - Men’s 400m individual medley: Hagino (JPN) starts strong, but title goes to teammate Seto

Swimming his seventh final in Barcelona, Kosuke Hagino (JPN), who won the silver in the 400m free and in the 200m IM, was the man to beat after setting the best 2013 performance in April in a time of 4:07.61. His tiredness came perhaps to surface after the 300m-mark, when he lost the lead of the race, finishing only fifth in 4:10.77. Hagino was the 2012 Olympic bronze medallist in this event. Instead, it was compatriot Daiya Seto who shone in Barcelona, getting his first individual medal (4:08.69) at a FINA World Championships. He had previously swum the heats of the winning Japanese 4x200m free relay at the Palau Sant Jordi.

The silver went to 19-year-old Chase Kalisz (USA), who touched home in 4:09.22. It is his first success at this level. Thiago Pereira (BRA), silver medallist in London last year, got this time the bronze, finishing in 4:09.48. It was his second podium presence in the Catalan capital, after ranking third in the 200m IM. This way, Pereira got the fifth medal for his country at these Championships.

World Record: Michael Phelps (USA), 4:03.84 – August 10, 2008 in Beijing (CHN)
Championships Record: Michael Phelps (USA), 4:06.22 – April 1, 2007 in Melbourne (AUS)
Best performance of the current season (since January 2013): Kosuke Hagino (JPN), 4:07.61 – April in Niigata (JPN)
2003-2011 winners in this event: 2003 – Michael Phelps (USA, 4:09.09); 2005 – Laszlo Cseh (HUN, 4:09.63); 2007 – Michael Phelps (USA, 4:06.22); 2009 – Ryan Lochte (USA, 4:07.01); 2011 – Ryan Lochte (USA, 4:07.13)
The best in this event (1. most victories or 2. fastest time): Andras Hargitay (HUN, 1973 & 1975), Tamas Darnyi (HUN, 1986 & 1991), Tom Dolan (USA, 1994 & 1998), Michael Phelps (USA, 2003 & 2007) and Ryan Lochte (USA, 2009 & 2011)
2012 Olympic podium: 1. Ryan Lochte (USA, 4:05.18), 2. Thiago Pereira (BRA, 4:08.86), 3. Kosuke Hagino (JPN, 4:08.94)