Quadruple Olympic champion Kosuke Kitajima was locked out of the medals in the 200m breaststroke on day three at Japan nationals and trials a Tokyo's Tatsumi International Pool as Ryo Tateishi and Yuta Suenaga storm inside 2:10, Tateishi's 2:09.21 the best in the world so far this year. In other finals, Satomi Suzuki, 18, bucked the trend of suit slowdown in 2010 with a best time of 2:24.27 to win the women's 200m breaststroke;  Aya Terakawa wins the 100m back in 59.72; world champion Junya Koga clocks 53.49 to get the better of Ryosuke Irie in men's 100 back.

Men's 200m breaststroke

The crown went to defending champion Ryo Tateishi in the second sub-2:10 effort of the year and the fastest in the world so far this year, 2:09.21 (29.39,  1:02.67,  1:35.92). Silver and bronze going respectively to Yuta Suenaga, on 2:09.57 (third inside 2:10 so far this year), and Naoya Tomita, on 2:11.37. The helm of the early 2010 world rankings had for the past month been held by world champion of 2009, Brenton Rickard (AUS), on 2:09.31.

Kitajima, back from a 2009 break and training of late with Dave Salo in California, managed a 2:12.53. He led at the 50m on 29.25, the 100m on 1:02.41 but by the last turn had slipped to third 0.4sec back from Suenaga, who was 0.01sec ahead of Tateishi. Out of the turn and the game was up for the Olympic champion, who lost some 2.5sec to the leaders on the way home and was passed by Tomita. The Tokyo meet serves as the qualifying event for Pan Pacific Championships, at Irvine, California, in August.

Tateishi's time rates as second-best ever from pre-Feb 2008 era, the world record having stood to Brendan Hansen (USA)as 2:08.50, while Kitajima's best then was 2:09.42.

"My body just stopped moving in the last 50 meters," Kitajima told Kyodo. "I felt enormous pressure to win. This loss makes me think I've got a mountain to climb, but I'll try to think that I had a chance to get tougher."

Between 2002, when Kitajima became the first man to crack 2:10sec at the world student Games in Busan, and 2007, the Olympic champion of 2004 and 2008 got inside that barrier five times and was the lone Japanese man among three men in the world to have swum in such speedy water. In 2008 and 2009, four other Japanese men helped Kitajima swell the national league of domestic sub-2:10 performances to 22. Kitajima remains at the helm with his world record of 2:07.51, followed by Ryo Tateishi, winner of the 50m in Tokyo this week ahead of Kitajima, on 2:08.25, Kazuki Otsuka (disqualified in the semis yesterday), on 2:08.64, Yuta Suenaga on 2:08.77, and Naoya Tomita on 2:09.32.

Women's 200m breaststroke

Satomi Suzuki, 18, bucked the trend of suit slowdown in 2010 with a best time of 2:24.27 victory that lifted her from 10th to 6th best in Japan all-time and granted her the national crown. The national record of Rie Kaneto, on 2:20.72, belongs to another era, though the holder was good enough for a place on the podium today, in second on 2:24.57, with bronze going to Fumiko Kawanabe, on 2:25.79.

Women's 100m backstroke

In another upset on the day, national record holder (59.14) Shiho Sakai was forced to settle for bronze on 1:00.62 behind champion Aya Terakawa, for whom a 59.72 victory marked a close shave with her lifetime best of 59.67 from nationals last year when shiny suits were in. Even better news as far as the clock was concerned was to be found in the silver slot: Miyuki Takemura's 1:00.46 was a best 0.4sec and elevated her from 8th to 5th on the all-time Japan ranking.

Men's 100m backstroke

World champion Junya Koga was more than a second away from shiny best but his best on a new day in textile shorts, 53.49, was good enough to get the better of Ryosuke Irie, on 53.61 after a 53.35 in semis yesterday. The bronze went to Masafumi Yamaguchi, on 54.66. Irie lost the race down the first length, turning third in 26.22, compared to 25.89 for Koga and to his own split of 25.83 in the semi.

"I achieved my goal of winning the race, but I let my guard down a little bit since I was in the lead by a head at the halfway mark," Koga told Kyodo. "And then I didn't swim well in the next 25 meters. I was confident I could finish under 53 seconds, though."

Semi-Finals:

Defending champion Haruka Ueda claimed lane 4 for the final of the 200m freestyle in 1:59.07, off a 57.42 half-way split, with Hanae Ito closest to her, on 2:00.57. Ueda is national record holder on 1:57.38, from Rome 2009, while Ito has a best of 1:59.84 from nationals a year ago.

In the men's 200m free, Takeshi Matsuda clocked 1:48.21 to claim lane 4 for the final 0.38sec ahead of Syunsuke Kuzuhara, with Yoshihiro Okumura the third man inside 1:49, by 0.07sec. Matsuda's best time of 1:47.83 dates back to 2006.

Four women raced inside the minute in the semis of the 100m butterfly, Yuka Kato at the helm on 59.39, with Tomoyo Kukuda, Chika Dobashi and Natsumi Hoshi between 59.57 and 59.84. Kato has held the national record on 57.89 since September 2008.

Takurou Fujii turned third in 24.52 at the half-way mark of the second semi of the men's 100m 'fly but stormed home to claim lane 4 for the final in 51.99. Winner of the 100m free in a national record in Tokyo this week, Masayuki Kishida was out in 23.88 and stopped the clock at 52.19, with Kohei Kawamoto, national record holder on 51.00 since last September, third through on 52.80.