This morning's program staged the two most opposite events in swimming: men's 50 free and women's 800 free; not just in terms of distance and number of entries, but in how the athletes behave to the public's perception of the races. While the men in the 50 are celebrated for their bravado after sprinting 1 lap of the pool, music was actually playing during the heats of the 16 grueling laps completed by the women in the 800. True, the heats of distance freestyle events may not seem super exciting even to a diehard swim fan, but the lack of respect for those competing is disheartening.

Gary Hall Jr. (USA), the king of show and also the defending Olympic Champ looked strong, controlling the race perfectly over Roland Schoeman (RSA). Hall is first after heats in the 22.04, Schoeman is tied for 7th on 22.41, Bart Kizierowski (POL) is tied for 3rd spot with Salim Iles (ALG) at 22.26 and Frederick Bousquet (FRA) is 2nd with 22.24. Out of the semi-finals: Alexander Popov (RUS) and Pieter vd Hoogenband (NED) who finished 18th and 17th respectively.

Laure Manaudou (FRA) looked fantastic from start to finish. With a beautifully paced stroke, Laure pulled away from the dive and looks unbeatable for tomorrow night's final. Her time this morning was a best of 8:25.91 to second place qualifier Rebecca Cooke's (GBR) 8:28.47. 30 year old Jana Henke (GER) has been swimming this event for over a decade; an accomplishment that is unheard of in distance swimming. Henke sits in 4th spot and is always a threat for a medal.

Last year's world champ, Hannah Stockbauer (GER) was about 15 seconds off her best and did not qualify for the final. It took an 8:34.15 to get into the top 8, Brittany Reimer (CAN) was about 13 seconds off her best from last summer and finished 17th.

World record holder Ian Crocker (USA) looked back on track after a poor showing in the 100 free and split on the 4x100 free relay. He is the top qualifier after heats with a 52.03 followed by Andriy Serdinov (UKR) in 52.05 and Michael Phelps (USA) in 52.35. All three of these men have held the world record in this event and the final is one of the most anticipated of the Games as it will not only determine the Olympic Champion, but who swims (and has a great shot at another gold) on the US 4x100 medley relay.

One would think that in eight days of competition, the powers that be could create a schedule that minimized conflicts and exhaustion for the world's best swimmers. Unfortunately no schedule will ever satisfy everyone, but the women's 200 backstroke is certainly the one event that has suffered the most due to scheduling. Natalie Coughlin (USA) is arguably the best swimmer not in the event. She went a 2:08.53 in 2002.

Coughlin chose to swim the 100 free instead, which has its final tonight. Laure Manaudou (FRA) has only posted a 2:15.32 in the event, but has a 2:10.22 scm from 2003 and considering she swims a 1:00.64-100 back, 4:05.34-400 free, and 8:25.91-800 free (and will likely be faster in finals) imagine what she could do in the 200 back! Unfortunately, she just finished the 800, and rumor has it that she much prefers the 400 and 800 freestyle to even the 100 back. Perhaps her results here will give her the push to swim it at her next major competition.

Who is left? Stanislava Komarova (RUS) with a 2:10.71, Reiko Nakamura (JPN) with a 2:11.14 and Kirsty Coventry (ZIM) with a 2:12.29. 2003 World Champ, Katy Sexton is 8th with a 2:13.25, while Jennifer Fratesi (CAN) sits in 6th spot with a 2:13.00.

DAY 6 AUGUST 19

PRELIMS

50 METRES FREESTYLE
1    22.04    Hall Gary,74,USA
2    22.24    Bousquet Frederick,81,FRA
3    22.26    Kizierowski Bartosz,77,POL
      22.26    Iles Salim,75,ALG
5    22.28    Draganja Duje,83,CRO
6    22.30    Sicot Julien,78,FRA
7    22.33    Lezak Jason,75,USA
8    22.41    Schoeman Roland,80,RSA
      22.41    Volynets Oleksander,74,UKR
10    22.42    Hawke Brett,74,AUS
      22.42    Nystrand Stefan,81,SWE
12    22.45    Busquets Ricardo,75,PUR
13    22.51    Novy Karel,80,SUI
14    22.52    Noriega Javier,80,ESP
      22.52    Scherer Fernando,74,BRA
16    22.53    Ferns Lyndon,84,RSA
17    22.56    vdHoogenband Pieter,78,NED
18    22.58    El-Masri Rafed,82,SYR
      22.58    Kenkhuis Johan,80,NED
      22.58    Popov Alexander,71,RUS
21    22.59    Gimbutis Rolandas,81,LTU
22    22.70    Vismara Lorenzo,75,ITA
23    22.71    Lorente Eduardo,77,ESP
24    22.72    Tsagkarakis Apostolos,82,GRE
25    22.80    Scarica Michele,82,ITA
26    22.82    Callus Ashley,79,AUS
27    22.90    Meolans Jose M.,78,ARG
28    22.96    Shyrshov Vyacheslav,79,UKR
29    22.97    Kapralov Andrei,80,RUS
30    23.01    Rose Matthew,81,CAN
31    23.05    Cavic Milorad,84,SCG
32    23.12    Takacs Krisztian,85,HUN
33    23.13    Neviarovski Stanislav,81,BLR
34    23.19    Hernandez Marcos,78,CUB
35    23.20    Lee Chung-Hee,81,KOR
36    23.23    Nachaev Ravil,74,UZB
      23.23    Becerra Camilo,80,COL
      23.23    Silva Pedro,77,POR
39    23.26    Tayla Kaan,86,TUR
40    23.31    Probert Carl,75,FIJ
41    23.33    Hard Jere,78,FIN
42    23.41    Chen Zuo,82,CHN
43    23.43    Laban Joshua,82,ISV
      23.43    Santos Julio,77,ECU
45    23.51    Papachrysantou  Chrisan,79,CYP
46    23.52    Ong Allen,79,MAS
      23.52    Chinnapasaen Arwut,80,THA
48    23.54    Wang Shao-An,84,TPE
49    23.56    Haustov Danil,80,EST
50    23.58    Mafio Jose,78,URU
51    23.61    Atkinson Jevon,85,JAM
52    23.67    Antonov Raichin,80,BUL
53    23.69    Diaz Rodrigo,84,GUA
54    23.84    Arnarson Orn,81,ISL
55    23.88    Shteinikov Oleg,85,KAZ
56    23.90    Haynes Terrence,85,BAR
57    24.68    Kaaki Abed R.,86,LIB
58    24.82    Arkhurst Gregory,76,CIV
      24.82    Prudencio Mauricio,80,BOL
60    24.86    Dansou Alois,82,BEN
61    25.07    Bakale Rony,87,CGO
62    25.33    Hackel Chris,87,MRI
63    25.47    Jewel Ahmed,83,BAN
64    26.16    Shade Suke Cole,80,CMR
65    26.40    Steele Johnathan,84,GRN
66    26.61    Gjata Kreshnik,83,ALB
      26.61    Danilov Semen,86,KGZ
68    26.75    Bonabart Anderson,80,FSM
69    26.81    Maliki Ibrahim,81,NIG
70    27.49    Hem Kiry,80,CAM
71    27.55    Ghezzawi Khaled,87,LBA
72    27.68    Hojamamedov Hojamamed,86,TKM
73    27.71    Mubah Hassan,84,MDV
74    27.72    De Freitas Donnie,84,VIN
75    27.77    Luberenga Edgar,79,UGA
76    28.10    Diawara Abdou,78,GUI
77    28.17    Vongphachanh Bounthanom,80,LAO
78    28.99    Sekamana Leonce,80,RWA
79    29.96    Keita David,80,MLI
80    29.97    Saad Mohammed,81,YEM
81    30.36    Ouedraogo Mamadou,67,BUR
82    32.86    Williams Malique,88,ANT
83    34.11    Walesi Yona,79,MAW


100 METRES BUTTERFLY
1    52.03    Crocker Ian,82,USA
2    52.05    Serdinov Andriy,82,UKR
3    52.35    Phelps Michael,85,USA
4    52.44    Cavic Milorad,84,SCG
5    52.54    Huegill Geoff,79,AUS
6    52.56    Draganja Duje,83,CRO
7    52.57    Rupprath Thomas,77,GER
8    52.61    Esposito Franck,71,FRA
9    52.62    Marchenko Igor,75,RUS
10    52.71    Yamamoto Takashi,78,JPN
11    52.76    Mangabeira Gabriel,82,BRA
12    52.91    Hickman James,76,GBR
13    52.93    Korotyshkin Evgeni,83,RUS
14    52.96    Mintenko Michael,75,CAN
15    53.07    Swanepoel Corney,86,NZL
16    53.11    Meeuw Helge,84,GER
17    53.22    Almeida Kaio,84,BRA
18    53.26    Pini Ryan,83,PNG
19    53.41    Keizer Joris,79,NED
20    53.45    Pine Adam,76,AUS
21    53.46    Sylantyev Denis,76,UKR
22    53.48    Cooper Todd,83,GBR
23    53.49    Nalesso Mattia,81,ITA
24    53.53    Morgado Simao,79,POR
25    53.63    Bousquet Frederick,81,FRA
26    53.87    Lagoun Pavel,79,BLR
27    53.89    Gherghel Ioan,78,ROM
28    54.02    Hard Jere,78,FIN
29    54.14    Mankoc Peter,78,SLO
30    54.15    Botes Eugene,80,RSA
31    54.20    Pastras Sotirios,86,GRE
32    54.26    Andersson Erik,84,SWE
33    54.29    Ilika Josh,76,MEX
34    54.43    Gaspar Zsolt,77,HUN
35    54.46    Salcius Rimvydas,85,LTU
36    54.58    Rojas Luis,79,VEN
37    54.71    Becerra Camilo,80,COL
38    54.76    Jeong Doo-Hee,84,KOR
39    54.87    Rubacek Michal,86,CZE
40    54.91    Palazov Georgi,80,BUL
41    55.03    Khudiyev Rustam,85,KAZ
42    55.12    Reynisson Hjortur,83,ISL
43    55.17    Wu Peng,87,CHN
44    55.24    Otero Eduardo,80,ARG
45    55.71    Miladinovski Alex,79,MKD
46    55.90    Lyashko Oleg,82,UZB
47    55.98    Valdivieso Juan,81,PER
48    56.22    Slimani Aghiles,82,ALG
49    56.37    Uras Onur,85,TUR
50    56.39    Rees Nicholas,83,BAH
51    56.68    Touw Ngie Gordon,85,SUR
52    56.80    Francis Conrad,81,SRI
53    56.81    Duda Andrejs,81,LAT
54    56.86    Wibowo Andy,80,INA
55    57.39    O'Keefe Daniel,73,GUM
56    57.85    Bisslik David,82,ARU
57    58.92    Matias Luis,86,ANG
58    1:00.91    Medrano-M. Fernando,88,NCA
59    1:01.60    Aweisat Rad,86,PLE


WOMEN


200 METRES BACKSTROKE
1    2:10.71    Komarova Stanislava,86,RUS
2    2:11.14    Nakamura Reiko,82,JPN
3    2:12.49    Coventry Kirsty,83,ZIM
4    2:12.55    Hoelzer Margaret,83,USA
5    2:12.96    Buschschulte Antje,78,GER
6    2:13.00    Fratesi Jennifer,84,CAN
7    2:13.05    Ornstedt Louise,85,DEN
8    2:13.25    Sexton Katy,82,GBR
9    2:13.33    McLean Hannah,81,NZL
10    2:13.55    Terakawa Aya,84,JPN
11    2:14.06    Morgan Melissa,85,AUS
12    2:14.07    Verraszto Evelyn,89,HUN
13    2:14.42    Hetzer Nicole,79,GER
14    2:14.49    Amshennikova Irina,86,UKR
15    2:14.85    Adcock Frances,84,AUS
16    2:15.01    Jovanovic Sanja,86,CRO
17    2:15.34    Caverly Kristen,84,USA
18    2:15.77    Warden Elizabeth,78,CAN
19    2:16.08    Pivonkova Katerina,79,CZE
20    2:16.10    Lee Karen,83,GBR
21    2:17.29    Erke Derya,83,TUR
22    2:17.29    Filippi Alessia,88,ITA
23    2:17.62    Carman Anja,85,SLO
24    2:17.68    Lin Man Hsu,89,TPE
25    2:17.73    Lee Da-Hye,87,KOR
26    2:18.23    Morales Gisela,87,GUA
27    2:19.75    Putra Alexandra,86,FRA
28    2:19.83    Tsai Hiu Wai,83,HKG
29    2:21.11    Vorathamrong Chonlathor,80,THA
30    2:21.93    Karastergiou Eirini,82,GRE
31    2:23.39    Gotay Gretchen,80,PUR
32    2:26.17    Iskanderova Saida,80,UZB
33    2:31.56    Zhan Shu,86,CHN

800 METRES FREESTYLE

1	8:25.91	Manaudou Laure,86,FRA
2	8:28.47	Cooke Rebecca,83,GBR
3	8:30.08	Shibata Ai,82,JPN
4	8:30.87	Munz Diana,82,USA
5	8:31.06	Henke Jana,73,GER
6	8:32.36	Keller Kalyn,85,USA
7	8:33.61	Villaecija Erika,84,ESP
8	8:34.15	Paduraru Simona,81,ROM
9	8:35.81	Paton Sarah-L,86,AUS
10	8:35.90	MacKenzie Linda,84,AUS
11	8:36.24	Chen Hua,82,CHN
12	8:36.48	Yamada Sachiko,82,JPN
13	8:38.10	Rigamonti Flavia,81,SUI
14	8:38.17	Stockbauer Hannah,82,GER
15	8:40.41	Kobrich Kristel,85,CHI
16	8:41.20	Potec Camelia,82,ROM
17	8:41.55	Reimer Brittany,88,CAN
18	8:42.65	Lymperta Marianna,79,GRE
19	8:47.38	Pechanova Jana,81,CZE
20	8:57.96	Beresnyeva Olga,85,UKR
21	8:59.81	Marcus Golda,83,ESA
22	9:01.42	Kwon You-Ri,89,KOR
23	9:01.62	Petrova Jelena,89,EST
24	9:02.41	Linton Rebecca,85,NZL
25	9:02.88	Roffey Heather,87,CAY
26	9:03.13	Moralieva Ivanka,83,BUL
27	9:06.96	Duguet Paula,87,COL
28	9:10.91	Galic Anita,85,CRO
29	9:20.06	Ciss Khadija,83,SEN