Hosszu warms up for Rio with European gold
Hungary's Katinka Hosszu twice set new championship records as she claimed a third successive 400 metres individual medley title at the European Swimming Championships in London on Monday.
Other winners on the first day of racing were Italy's Gabriele Detti, who lowered the eight-year-old championship record in the 400m freestyle, while the French men's sprint relay squad are now unbeaten in six major championships at Olympic, world and European level, the Netherlands taking the women's equivalent.
Hosszu had served warning in the morning's heats at the Aquatics Centre, which staged the 2012 Olympics. Not only did the 27-year-old set a new championship record, she also went faster than any European woman has ever swum.
She returned in the evening to lower that record by 0.07sec to 4min 30.90sec ahead of Britain's Hannah Miley and compatriot Zsuzsanna Jakabos.
It came as a pleasant shock to the Hungarian who felt she had started badly. "I was surprised," she said. "I felt as though I had just taken my clothes off. But I kept my calm, I told myself I had 400 metres.
"So I am feeling pretty good, really excited. Happy that I could go faster than this morning."
Despite all her recent success, Hosszu does not have an Olympic medal, but she refused to put pressure on herself saying: "I want to go to Rio but it is just going to be another day at the office."
Miley is part of the British team which has not rested for the event but she posted a time of 4min 35.27sec.
"Pleased and tired," she said. "It's hard to go into a championships when you are not 100 percent fresh, your ego gets bashed about a little bit because you want to swim fast."
The fortunes of Hosszu and Miley have diverged remarkably in the six years since Budapest staged the 2010 European Championships when the Briton won the title, more than three seconds ahead of Hosszu.
Neither made the podium in 2012 but since then Hosszu has won the medley double at the last two World Championships.
"I know, how times have changed," Miley said. "But I think it was more about the race than the time.
"My heat this morning wasn't too bad but tonight I wasn't really focusing on time. I was like I really need to get a medal."
- Bearded Guy -
Detti became the first champion when he won the 400m freestyle in a final missing world silver medallist James Guy who had finished 27th in the heats.
Ordinarily the 20-year-old's absence would be a shock but he is in the middle of heavy training and completely unrested for this meet, swimming bearded and in briefs rather than a competition suit.
Detti went marginally ahead of defending champion Velimir Stjepanovic at the halfway stage before pulling away and finishing in 3mins 44.01secs.
It lowered by 1.09secs the previous championship best of Yury Prilukov set in March 2008 at the advent of the performance-enhancing suit era.
Such had been the exertion that Detti was unable to haul himself on to the lane ropes to celebrate, his title continuing Italian success in London.
"It was a must for me to get gold after the diving and the synchronised swimmers got medals," he said.
"I started slow as usual but I looked around and I knew I had the energy."
Henrik Christiansen of Norway was second with Peter Bernek of Hungary third.
France continued their dominance of the men's 4x100m freestyle relay to win a third consecutive title in 3:13.48 ahead of Italy and Belgium.
The Netherlands won the women's equivalent in 3:33.80 with Federica Pellegrini propelling the Italian quartet to second ahead of Sweden.
Adam Peaty leads the way into the 100m breaststroke final, his time of 58.74secs bettered only by Olympic champion Cameron van der Burgh and Peaty himself.
Fran Halsall produced her fastest time since taking Commonwealth gold in 2010 to head the 50m butterfly field in 25.35secs.