SHANGHAI — About 30 minutes after winning a bronze medal in the 50-meter backstroke, Missy Franklin led off the U.S. women’s 4×200-meter relay team at the swimming world championships with an effort that made her teammate Katie Hoff exclaim with wonder.
Franklin, a 16-year-old junior-to-be at Regis Jesuit High School, not only gave the United States a commanding lead, she also posted a time that would have won the gold medal in the women’s 200 freestyle final earlier in the week. Her leadoff leg of 1 minute, 55.08 seconds surpassed Italian star Federica Pellegrini’s gold-medal time by 0.50 seconds.
“I looked around at (Alison Schmitt) and said, ‘Did she really go 1:55?’ ” Hoff said. “That really got me going.”
It got the U.S. team going too. Americans Dagny Knutson, Hoff and Schmitt held on for the gold medal, winning in 7:46.14 over Australia (7:47.42) and China (7:47.66). The victory avenged the team’s loss to China at this meet two years ago while completing Franklin’s medal collection — gold, silver and bronze — in her first world championship meet.
Franklin also earned silver in Sunday night’s 4×100 final, a race in which only the anchor of the gold-medal winning Dutch team swam faster. In the 50 back, a non-Olympic event, Franklin finished behind Russia’s Anastasia Zueva (27.79) and Japan’s Aya Terakawa (27.93) in 28.01.
“I’ve never felt this strong,” Franklin said. “I’m just having the time of my life.”
Today, Franklin was fastest in 200 backstroke qualifying, finishing at 2:07.71. She then finished in 2:05.90 in the semifinals.
“I’m so excited to be at this meet,” she said. “Getting that top 16 was definitely the goal, so to be back first is really, really great and I’m super happy with that.”
The final is Saturday.
In the men’s 200 individual medley, Michael Phelps found himself on the losing end of a close finish, watching teammate Ryan Lochte celebrate the first world record set since high-tech bodysuits were banned 1 1/2 years ago.
It was Phelps’ second straight loss to his good friend, who had beaten the 14-time Olympic gold medalist in the 200 freestyle two nights earlier.
“They both sort of told me the same thing, I need to be in better shape,” Phelps said. “If I want to be faster, the work has to be there — and it has to be there consistently.”
Lochte sprinted to the wall in 1:54.00 seconds, then pumped his right arm before clasping hands with Phelps in the next lane. He lowered his old mark set two years ago in Rome by a tenth of a second.
“One word describes that race — jeah!” Lochte said, using his favorite made-up expression.
Phelps finished in 1:54.16.
Hungary’s Laszlo Cseh took the bronze in 1:57.69.
