CANET, France - Brian Johns of Richmond, B.C., won the gold medal in the men's 200-metre individual medley in comeback style Thursday to highlight a triple-medal Canadian performance at the second stop on the Mare Nostrum swimming circuit.

Johns, fifth at halfway point, clocked a solid two minutes and 03.21 seconds to upset Australians Grant McGregor second in 2:03.57 and Robert Van Der Zant, third in 2:03.69. Canadian record holder Curtis Myden of Calgary was fourth in 2:04.68.

It was John's first international victory in a long course competition. The promising 18-year-old placed 15th in the 200 IM at the Sydney Olympics.

In the women's 200 IM, double Olympic champion Yana Klochkova was the winner in a meet record 2:14.75 with Marianne Limpert of Fredericton second in 2:17.86 and Ling Shuang of China third 2:18.28.

In the men's 100 breaststroke, Oleg Lisogor of the Ukraine took the gold in 1:02.52 with Dimitri Komornikov of Russia second in 1:02.70 and Olympic finalist Morgan Knabe of Edmonton third in 1:02.92 just over a second off his Canadian record set at the Sydney Games. Chad Thomsen of Edmonton was eighth.

Mike Mintenko of Moose Jaw, Sask., was fourth in the men's 100 butterfly, Rhiannon Leier of Winnipeg and Kristy Cameron of Clinton, Ont., fourth and eighth in the women's 100 breaststroke, Johns was also fifth in the 200 freestyle, Nadine Rolland of Montreal sixth in the women's 50 freestyle and Audrey Lacroix of Pont-Rouge, Que., seventh in the women's 100 butterfly.

Canada ends the three-day meet with seven medals.

The third stop on the circuit is Saturday and Sunday in Rome. The series concludes next week in Monte Carlo.