Stunner at the pool: Kazakhstan wins 1st Olympic swim medal

Golf tees off for the first time at the Olympics since 1904 as the men start their first round of play at the Olympic Golf Course – although the top four players in the world won’t be competing because of Zika fears.

After five hours of sleep, Phelps said he actually felt rather fresh for the afternoon preliminaries.

Balandin touched in 2:07.46, while Josh Prenot of the United States rallied to claim silver in 2:07.53.

Phelps will be seeking his fourth straight 200 IM title at the Olympics. “I’ve been able to put my body through things like this over the years”. He raced to 1:58.41, the overall third-fastest time of the qualifying heats. He has tied the greatest number of individual victories (12) with Leonidas of Rhodes, and with the 200m IM and 100m butterfly still on his program, he can break a 2168 year-old record.

Lochte, fresh off winning a gold medal with the 4x200m freestyle relay on Tuesday night, said he got about four hours of sleep.

Phelps said he’s been texting with former Baltimore Ravens star Ray Lewis, talking about the right way to end his career.

“I tried to do as much as I could, get my lactate cleared, had a massage, had an ice bath, eat”, Phelps said, as reported by the Associated Press. “Win or lose, we’re still good friends”.

Aly Raisman, another American who won gold with Biles in the team competition, is also in the mix Thursday but teammate Gabby Douglas, the defending Olympic champion, will be on the sidelines.

Katie Ledecky, Allison Schmitt, Leah Smith and Maya DiRado posted a time of 7:43.03 in winning the final. But he did cruise through the semifinals of the 200 individual medley with the fastest time, besting longtime rival and countryman Ryan Lochte. “We got out there and did our job”. Bronte is the reigning world champion, but Cate is the world-record holder. Cierra Runge was the slowest of the group, 1:57.75.

“It’s good consistency, I guess”, she said nonchalantly. “If that’s not including me, then that’s what I want”.

Adrian, 27, did not own the best time in the world in the 100 free entering these Olympics; that distinction belonged to Australian Cameron McEvoy, who posted a scorching 47.04 back in April, the second-fastest time ever swum in the event.

Another American, Abbey Weitzeil, advanced with the seventh-fastest time.

Rikke Moller Pedersen of Denmark set the pace in the women’s 200 breaststroke, which provides another chance for American Lilly King and Russia’s Yulia Efimova to carry on their rivalry.

King, who beat Efimova for the gold in the shorter race after calling out the Russian’s doping history, is not almost as dominant in the longer race.