Michael Andrew, Jesse Puts spring surprises at Short Course Worlds

MONTREAL: US teenager Michael Andrew and Jesse Puts of the Netherlands were upset winners on Friday at the Short Course World Swimming Championships in Windsor, Canada.

The 17-year-old Andrew, whose age-group success has seen him tipped as a multi-medal threat in the mold of Olympic superstar Michael Phelps, won the 100m individual medley in 51.84sec.

He edged Japan’s Rio Olympic bronze medallist Daiya Seto, who took silver in 52.01 with Japan’s Shinri Shioura earning bronze in 52.17.

World record holder Vladimir Morozov settled for equal sixth, shortly after anchoring Russia to victory in the men’s 4x50m freestyle relay.

Aleksei Brianskii, Nikita Lobintsev, Aleksandr Popkov and Morozov clocked 1:24.51 to claim gold ahead of the United States and Japan in the sprint relay that opened the evening’s action.

Their triumph came on the same day as another damning report on state-backed doping in Russia.

Canadian investigator Richard McLaren released a new report in London saying that more than 1,000 Russian athletes were involved in or benefitted from efforts to conceal positive tests.

Amid renewed calls for banning Russia from international sports, the country’s swimmers stuck to business in Windsor, bookending the night with a victory in the men’s 200m freestyle relay. — AFP