Hungarian teenager Kristof Milak shattered Michael Phelp’s long-standing world record in the 200m butterfly on Wednesday to win gold at the World Swimming Championships. Milak touched the wall in a time of 1:50.73 ahead of Japan’s Daiya Seto who clocked 1:53.86 and South African Chad le Clos with the timing of 1:54.15.
After 10 years, his new record broke the American great Michael Phelp’s previous record of 1:51.51 set in 2009.
Phelps in his decorated career in swimming holds the record for the most Olympic gold medals having won 23 of them and had held the world-leading time in the event for 18 years in total, to become the youngest male to break a swimming world record at the age of 15 in March 2001.
Olympic Channel’s website published the 19-year-old Milak’s remarks which said,” It is a tremendous honor to beat such a great men’s world record. When I turned back and I saw the time, 1:50.73, all the pressure and tension just went off my back and all the joy came out”.
Chinese giant Sun Yang who is the triple Olympic champion had already retained his 200m and 400m crown in Gwangju but he finished a distant sixth in the 800m final.
