The Past Is Defeating the Present at Olympic Games in Tokyo

Jul 25, 2021; Tokyo, Japan; Chase Kalisz (USA) celebrates after winning the men's 400m individual medley final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Summer Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Network

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The Past Is Defeating the Present at Olympic Games in Tokyo

Racing is the bottom line of the Olympic Games and getting a hand on the wall ahead of the competition is the most-important goal. Nonetheless, it is interesting to note that through two men’s finals in Tokyo (obviously, a small sample size), the past is defeating present day.

In the 400-meter individual medley and 400 freestyle, the winning times are the slowest produced at the Olympics in years. Following up on his silver medal from the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, American Chase Kalisz clocked in at 4:09.42 to capture gold in the 400 medley. In the 400 freestyle, surprise champion Ahmed Hafnaoui checked in at 3:43.36.

While Kalisz has been as fast as 4:05.90 in the 400 medley, his gold-medal time in Tokyo is the slowest for a champion since 2000, when the United States’ Tom Dolan won the second of his back-to-back titles in 4:11.76. Michael Phelps followed by prevailing in 4:08.26 (2004) and 4:03.84 (2008) and Ryan Lochte went 4:05.18 in 2012. In 2016, gold went to Japan’s Kosuke Hagino in 4:06.05.

In the 400 freestyle, Hafnaoui’s winning effort is the slowest since 1996, when New Zealand’s Danyon Loader touched the wall in 3:47.97. Australian legend Ian Thorpe doubled in 2000 (3:40.59) and 2004 (3:43.10) while Korea’s Tae-Hwan Park was the 2008 titlist in 3:41.86. China’s Sun Yang, the 2012 champion, went 3:40.14 and Australia’s Mack Horton was timed in 3:41.55 during his 2016 triumph.

Could it be that morning finals are a contributing factor? Unlikely. Events tend to go in cycles, and it just happens that these two events were a bit slower during this Olympiad. It’s a unique development worth noting, but don’t expect it to continue. And no matter their times, Kalisz and Hafnaoui will always be known as Olympic champions.

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