'Better than Olympics' as Popovici wins world 200m free gold
Hobson was forced to settle for silver (1:43.84) with Japan's 18-year-old Tatsuya Murasa taking bronze (1:44.54).
"Even better than the Olympics to be honest," said Popovici, who reclaimed his world crown from 2022.
"You know why?" he added.
"I trained a lot for the Olympics but this year has been more relaxed and easygoing."
He added: "I am very proud of myself."
The final in Singapore was billed as a duel between Popovici -- the Olympic champion -- and Paris bronze medallist Hobson.
And so it turned out, with Popovici putting on the afterburners in the dying stages of the race.
Britain's Matthew Richards, who took silver in the French capital a year ago, was a surprise casualty in the semi-finals.
South Korea's Hwang Sun-woo, who went to the first turn in front, finished just outside the medals in fourth.
The 200m freestyle was the first of five finals on the third day of competition in Singapore.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
a day ago
- France 24
Vonn appoints Svindal as coach ahead of 2026 Olympics
The former Olympic and serial world champion stunned the sports world when she returned to the US ski team last year aged 40, five years after retirement. She has her sights set on adding to the downhill gold she won at the 2010 Vancouver Games at Milan/Cortina next year with her close friend Svindal now on her coaching team. "Bringing Aksel onto my team for this season feels like a natural and incredibly exciting step," Vonn said on Wednesday. "We've shared so much history on the mountain, from training to winning World Cup titles, and there's a deep level of trust and respect that's developed over the years. "To have him officially on my team as we push for the Cortina Games is a huge boost." Svindal, a two-time former overall World Cup champion and double Olympic gold medallist, and Vonn will begin preparations for Milan-Cortina with a training camp in Chile "later this summer". Vonn, who has 82 World Cup wins to her name, was forced into retirement following a serious knee injury. But after undergoing a titanium reconstruction of her knee, she returned to competition last season, picking up the first podium of her return at Sun Valley in March.
LeMonde
a day ago
- LeMonde
Qatargate: French investigators scrutinize FIFA's contracts
Did Qatar convince members of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association's (FIFA) executive commitee to vote in its favor on December 2, 2010, during the vote to awarding the right to host the 2022 World Cup, via a bonus, which was provided for prior to the vote and included in a television contract signed between FIFA and the Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera? French investigating judges Serge Tournaire and Virginie Tilmont have been conducting a judicial investigation into "corruption" amid the conditions by which Qatar, "a country rated the lowest technically among all candidates" by FIFA's inspection teams, secured the right to host the tournament. As part of the investigation, the judges have been conducting verification efforts to answer the question of corruption. In late 2022, they sent a judicial cooperation request to the Swiss authorities. The judges became intrigued when reading the contract between Al Jazeera Sports (now BeIN Sports) and FIFA, which was worth $400 million (€347 million) in total and was signed at the end of 2010. It includes a clause stating that "in the event that the 2022 competition is awarded to the State of Qatar, Al-Jazeera shall (...) pay to FIFA (...) the monetary amount of one hundred million United States dollars as a non-refundable contribution towards the costs of the host broadcast production."
LeMonde
2 days ago
- LeMonde
Trump creates task force to prepare for a 'historically successful' 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles
President Donald Trump on Tuesday, August 5, established a task force on the 2028 Olympic Games being held in Los Angeles that he said would ensure the event is "safe, seamless and historically successful." The 2028 Games will be the first Olympics to be hosted by the US since the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. "The LA Olympics is shaping up to be a wonderful moment for America. It's going to be incredible. It's so exciting," Trump said as he signed an executive order at the White House establishing the task force. The executive order calls for the task force to coordinate security and planning for the Games, streamline visa processing and credentialing for the athletes, coaches, media and other visitors coming to the US. Trump will serve as chair of the task force, with Vice President JD Vance as vice chair. Other members include a number of Cabinet secretaries and administration officials. At the event, Trump praised Gene Sykes, chair of the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee board of directors, for the USOPC's move to effectively bar transgender women from competing in women's sports. "The United States will not let men steal trophies from women at the 2028 Olympics," Trump said. He questioned why he didn't hear applause from the room when he praised Sykes for it, and then received some claps from some people in the room. 'A great honor' Trump "considers it a great honor to oversee this global sporting spectacle," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement, calling sports one of the president's "greatest passions." LA28 president and chair Casey Wasserman said the task force "marks an important step forward in our planning efforts and reflects our shared commitment to delivering not just the biggest, but the greatest Games the world has ever seen in the summer of 2028." Along with the 2028 Summer Games, Trump has said that the 2026 FIFA World Cup being hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico is among the events he's most looking forward to in his second term. In preparation for next year's competition, the governments of all three countries on Tuesday said they had held the first meeting of a trilateral coordinating council of government officials, industry leaders and security professionals discussing a variety of issues, including preparedness for any security threats ahead of the World Cup.
