Swimming at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Women's 100 metre backstroke
| Women's 100 metre backstroke at the Games of the XXVII Olympiad | ||||||||||
| Venue | Sydney International Aquatic Centre | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | September 17, 2000 (heats & semifinals) September 18, 2000 (final) | |||||||||
| Competitors | 47 from 40 nations | |||||||||
| Winning time | 1:00.21 OR | |||||||||
| Medalists | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
| Swimming events at the 2000 Summer Olympics  | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freestyle | ||||
| 50 m | men | women | ||
| 100 m | men | women | ||
| 200 m | men | women | ||
| 400 m | men | women | ||
| 800 m | women | |||
| 1500 m | men | |||
| Backstroke | ||||
| 100 m | men | women | ||
| 200 m | men | women | ||
| Breaststroke | ||||
| 100 m | men | women | ||
| 200 m | men | women | ||
| Butterfly | ||||
| 100 m | men | women | ||
| 200 m | men | women | ||
| Individual medley | ||||
| 200 m | men | women | ||
| 400 m | men | women | ||
| Freestyle relay | ||||
| 4×100 m | men | women | ||
| 4×200 m | men | women | ||
| Medley relay | ||||
| 4×100 m | men | women | ||
The women's 100 metre backstroke event at the 2000 Summer Olympics took place on 17–18 September at the Sydney International Aquatic Centre in Sydney, Australia.[1]
At only 16 years of age, Diana Mocanu made an Olympic milestone to become Romania's first ever gold medalist in swimming. She fought off a head-to-head sprint challenge from Japan's Mai Nakamura on the final stretch to hit the wall first in a new Olympic standard of 1:00.21, the second-fastest of all time, cutting off Krisztina Egerszegi's 1992 record by nearly half a second (0.50).[2][3] Meanwhile, Nakamura seized off an early lead under a world-record pace (29.17), but ended up only with a silver medal in a Japanese record of 1:00.55.[4] Competing previously for the Unified Team and Russia in two Olympics (1992 and 1996), Nina Zhivanevskaya made a surprise packet with a bronze for Spain in a sterling time of 1:00.89.[5][6]
France's Roxana Maracineanu finished off the podium in fourth place at 1:01.10, and was followed in fifth by Nakamura's teammate Noriko Inada in 1:01.14.[4] Coming from second at the final turn, U.S. swimmer Barbara Bedford faded down the stretch to pick up a sixth spot with a time of 1:01.47. Aussie favorite Dyana Calub (1:01.61) and Denmark's Louise Ørnstedt (1:02.02) closed out the field.[6]
Notable swimmers missed out the top 8 final, featuring Germany's Antje Buschschulte, a pre-Olympic medal contender; South Africa's Charlene Wittstock, who eventually married to Albert II, Prince of Monaco in 2010; and Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry, who later emerged as one of the world's top backstroke swimmers in her decade.[7]
Records
Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.
| World record |  He Cihong (CHN) | 1:00.16 | Rome, Italy | 10 September 1994 | [8] |
| Olympic record |  Krisztina Egerszegi (HUN) | 1:00.68 | Barcelona, Spain | 28 July 1992 | [8] |
The following new world and Olympic records were set during this competition.
| Date | Event | Name | Nationality | Time | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 September | Final | Diana Mocanu |  Romania | 1:00.21 | OR |
Results
Heats
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Semifinals
Semifinal 1
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Diana Mocanu | Romania | 1:00.70 | Q, NR |
| 2 | 5 | Barbara Bedford |  United States | 1:01.61 | Q |
| 3 | 3 | Louise Ørnstedt |  Denmark | 1:01.69 | Q, NR |
| 4 | 2 | Dyana Calub |  Australia | 1:01.86 | Q |
| 5 | 7 | Kelly Stefanyshyn |  Canada | 1:02.35 | |
| 6 | 8 | Kirsty Coventry |  Zimbabwe | 1:02.54 | NR |
| 7 | 1 | Michelle Lischinsky | Canada | 1:02.55 | |
| 8 | 6 | Zhan Shu | China | 1:02.92 |
Semifinal 2
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Mai Nakamura |  Japan | 1:01.07 | Q |
| 2 | 6 | Noriko Inada | Japan | 1:01.25 | Q |
| 3 | 3 | Nina Zhivanevskaya |  Spain | 1:01.41 | Q |
| 4 | 5 | Roxana Maracineanu |  France | 1:01.61 | Q, NR |
| 5 | 2 | Antje Buschschulte |  Germany | 1:01.91 | |
| 6 | 7 | Katy Sexton |  Great Britain | 1:02.35 | |
| 7 | 1 | Sandra Völker | Germany | 1:03.01 | |
| 8 | 8 | Lu Donghua | China | 1:03.31 |
Final
| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 4 | Diana Mocanu | Romania | 1:00.21 | OR* |
 | 5 | Mai Nakamura | Japan | 1:00.55 | NR |
 | 6 | Nina Zhivanevskaya | Spain | 1:00.89 | NR |
| 4 | 7 | Roxana Maracineanu | France | 1:01.10 | NR |
| 5 | 3 | Noriko Inada | Japan | 1:01.14 | |
| 6 | 2 | Barbara Bedford | United States | 1:01.47 | |
| 7 | 8 | Dyana Calub | Australia | 1:01.61 | |
| 8 | 1 | Louise Ørnstedt | Denmark | 1:02.02 |
* Also a European and a Romanian record.
References
- ↑ "Swimming schedule". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 14 September 2000. Retrieved 14 May 2013.
- ↑ "Stunning Mocanu takes gold". BBC Sport. 18 September 2000. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
- ↑ "U.S. Swimmers Krayzelburg, Quann Win Gold". ABC News. 18 September 2000. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
- 1 2 Betti, Leeroy (18 September 2000). "No gold for Mai-chan". The Japan Times. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
- ↑ "U.S. teenager wins 100 breaststroke". ESPN. 18 September 2000. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- 1 2 Whitten, Phillip (18 September 2000). "Olympic Day 3 Finals (100 Breast, 100 Back M, 100 Back W, 200 Free)". Swimming World Magazine. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- ↑ Whitten, Phillip (17 September 2000). "Olympic Prelims: Day Two". Swimming World Magazine. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
- 1 2 3 "Sydney 2000: Swimming – Women's 100m Backstroke Heats" (PDF). Sydney 2000. LA84 Foundation. pp. 294–295. Retrieved 17 June 2013.