Tokyo 2020: Ariarne Titmus and Kristof Milak, the daring young people who challenge the legacy of Ledecky and Phelps

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07/28/2021 4:07 AM

• Clarín.com

• sports

Updated 07/28/2021 4:07 AM

Katie Ledecky

burst onto the international swimming scene in London 2012, when at just 15 years old she won the 800 freestyle with a mark that was, at the time, the second fastest in history.

Since that appointment, the American added to her personal collection four Olympic golds, 15 world titles and also took over the records of 400, 800 and 1,500 free.

For all that, she came to Tokyo as one of the great favorites of swimming.

But in the Japanese capital he met

The Terminator

, as the Australian

Ariarne Titmus

is known

.

The oceanic swimmer has

already spoiled the party in the 200 and 400 freestyle

, the two events in which both competed, and threatens to do the same in the 800, which will play its qualifying series on Thursday. 

Titmus delivered the first big blow to Ledecky in the

Gwangju World Championships 2019. At that event, she stole the free 400 crown by defeating it in the final more than a second ahead and becoming the

first swimmer to beat the Washington native in nine years

.

Titmus beat Ledecky in the final of the 400 free.

Photo REUTERS / Stefan Wermuth

The American, who at 24 is already considered a living legend of swimming, had to settle for silver, although she was able to climb to the top of the podium in the 800. But the message was clear:

Ariarne had arrived to discuss her reign

.

And in Tokyo, the Australian is showing credentials to become the new queen of swimming.

On Sunday, she scored the first victory against the American, winning the 400 freestyle with a time of 3m56s69, a

new Olympic record.

"I can't believe it, I'm trying to contain my emotions," he commented after that win.

And he affirmed that his great present is also due to what Ledecky did in his career: "If I did not have someone like Katie to chase,

I would

definitely

not be swimming this way

."

Tokyo Olympics.

Women's 400 m freestyle.Ariarne Titmus.

Wins Gold over her chief rival.

Katie ledecky.

At the women's 400 freestyle swimming finals.

It was a tremendous battle down to the wire between these two competitors.

@SybilWilkes @SportsCenter @NBCSports @NBCOlympics pic.twitter.com/OmUoKHpDiP

- Michael Penny (@ flavorsphotos1) July 26, 2021

Ledecky, silver with 3m57s36, watched as his young rival celebrated at the top of the podium while his coach,

Dean Boxall

, went crazy on the rostrum.

And after losing the first of the four titles he had won in Rio de Janeiro 2016 (he also won in 200 and 800 and the 4x200 free post), he had to settle for knowing that his world record of 3m56s46 still stood.

This Tuesday,

the blow was harder

.

Because not only Titmus hung another gold, this time in the 200 free and also

with a new best Olympic time

, 1m35s50.

But in this case the American did not even get on the podium: she was fifth, 1s71 behind the winner, and finished outside the top 3

for the first time in 36 finals.

"It was really exhausting, very hard.

It is not the time I could do,

but in the Olympic Games, the important thing is to win and I am happy," admitted the Australian after offering one of the most spectacular races since the start of the Games, especially for a completion without equivalent among its competitors.

Born in Tasmania 20 years ago, Titmus started nothing at age 7.

Photo EFE / EPA / Patrick B. Kraemer

Born in Launceston, Tasmania - a small island-state in Australia - on September 7, 2000, Ariarne began swimming when she was just seven years old. At 15, he packed his bags and moved his family to Brisbane, where he had better facilities to develop his undeniable talent.

In 2016 he started swimming for the Australian team

and has already made his mark in Tokyo, his first Games. 

In the Japanese capital, he has already got two gold.

But his path is not over yet:

he still has those 800 meters in which Ledecky

- who this Tuesday retaliated by winning the 1,500 freestyle, without Titmus in the pool -

does seem stronger

.

Although the oceanic knows that it can also do a great job in that test, in which it hung a bronze in the 2019 World Cups. Will it be able to hit a new blow and dethrone the American once again?

Kristof Milak, the new king of the 200 butterfly

Katie Ledecky's reign isn't the only one falling into the Tokyo Aquatic Center pool.

Although it is still much more solid and will require a lot of work to bring it down, it must be said that

one of the oldest Olympic records

of his compatriot Michel Phelps fell on Tuesday.

Hungarian

Kristof Milak

was crowned champion in the 200m butterfly with 1m51s25 and improved the 1m52s03 mark that

The Baltimore Shark

had set by winning gold at

Beijing 2008

.

Milak broke an Olympic record that Phelps had set in Beijing 2008. AP Photo / Martin Meissner

An impressive achievement, which he just celebrated in the water

with a warm smile

.

It is that for the Hungarian, who turned 21 last February, the biggest challenge

was not to overcome Phelps, but to improve the stratospheric mark of 1m50s73

, his own world record of 200 butterflies, which he set at the 2019 World Cups, when he broke for the first time a record for the American and became the first man in history to come down from the 1m51 barrier in that event. 

Milak began to attract the attention of the swimming world when, at just 17 years old, he hung the silver in 100 butterfly at the 2017 World Championships, in his homeland in Budapest, behind the American

Caleb Dressel

and ahead of the Olympic champion of Rio de Janeiro,

Joseph Schooling

.

Milak won gold in the 200 butterfly, but did not celebrate with much enthusiasm.

Photo EFE / EPA / Tamas Kovacs

His success brought him into the limelight and a month later he won four gold medals at the World Junior Championships, also excelling in freestyle.

He also won

three golds and a bronze

from Argentina when he participated in the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games.

Since then,

the only thing he has done has been to improve

, and after his 2020 derailed after catching Covid-19, he recovered and returned with everything to the pools, as he has already begun to show in Tokyo, where on Thursday he will run the qualifiers of the 100 butterfly to continue making history.