Relay quartet give Finland great start at European Championships

print this

The European Short Course Swimming Championships, held this year in Helsinki, got under way on Thursday, and the hosts got onto the medals table in the final event of the day, the 4x50 metres medley relay.
      For once, the silver medal that the team brought from the pool felt like gold, as the eventual winners Germany were more or less untouchable - they broke the world record to win in 1:34.06. The Finnish team of Tero Räty (backstroke), Jarno Pihlava (breaststroke), Jere Hård (butterfly), and freestyle anchor Matti Rajakylä clocked a time of 1:34.95 to set new Finnish and Nordic records. Italy took the bronze medals.
      Almost exactly a year ago, the Finnish quartet had narrowly missed out on a European Championships medal in Trieste, and they had vowed to themselves that when the games came to Helsinki, they would have to put on a proper show in front of the home audience.
     
The competitions run until Sunday evening in the Mäkelänrinne Swimming Centre.
      This evening Finland's main hope among the women will be going for the European Championship in the 100 metres freestyle. Hanna-Maria Seppälä finished in sixth place in her semi-final on Thursday, and it is hoped that she has left something in reserve in the tank for the final.
      Three years ago, Seppälä caused something of a sensation by winning the European title in the big pool, rather than in the 25-metre pool used for these short course competitions. She also took a silver and a gold medal last year in Trieste, with the gold coming not in the 100 metres freestyle but in the 100 metres medley, which will be on Saturday's programme.


Links:
  Unicef European Short Course Swiming Championships

Helsingin Sanomat