Youngster Popovici eases to Euro 200m freestyle gold
Romania's David Popovici swam the third quickest time in history to claim the men's 200m freestyle gold at the European Championships on Monday in Rome.
Popovici, who only turns 18 next month, cruised to victory in 1min 42.97sec with Switzerland's Antonio Djakovic in second place and Austria's Felix Auboeck third, both over two seconds behind.
On Saturday, Popovici claimed the world record in the 100m freestyle after taking double gold at the World Championships in June.
Earlier, Sweden's Louise Hansson won the women's 100m butterfly final in 56.66sec, beating France's Marie Wattel and Bosnia and Herzegovina's Lana Pudar.
In the 200m women's breaststroke final, Switzerland's Lisa Mamie took gold ahead of Italy's Martina Carraro and Lithuania's Kotryna Teterevkova, who had led until the final 50m.
Three more finals are scheduled Monday in the Rome sunshine at the Foro Italico complex's outdoor pool, including the mixed 4x100m freestyle.
R.Schiltz--LiLuX