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Rome ? Michael Phelps beat Milorad Cavic again. No doubt about it.
With a defiant performance in a supposedly inferior suit, Phelps stayed close over the outward lap and rallied on the return to become the first swimmer to break 50 seconds in the 100-meter butterfly, beating the Serbian with a time of 49.82.
Cavic also broke 50 seconds, but 49.95 only got him a silver ? and plenty of words to eat. He wasn?t nearly as close as last year?s Beijing Olympics, when Phelps famously won by one-hundredth of a second and Cavic always maintained that he actually touched first.
?That satisfied me a little bit,? Phelps said ?I set it up perfectly.?
When Phelps saw his time at the Foro Italico, he hopped up on the lane rope separating him and Cavic, threw up his arms and let out a scream toward his mom and sister in the stands.
Showing as much emotion as he ever has, Phelps also slapped the water and tugged at his Speedo LZR Racer swimsuit ? no doubt in reference to Cavic offering to get Phelps one of those supposedly faster polyurethane suits so he wouldn?t have any excuses.
?It doesn?t matter what suit you wear,? Phelps said. ?It matters how you train.?
In one of the most memorable events of the Beijing Olympics, Phelps pulled out an improbable victory on his final half-stroke to beat Cavic by the narrowest possible margin. .
Cavic has stewed over the loss ever since, believing he touched first but didn?t put as much pressure on the touchpad as Phelps, who ad-libbed an extra lunge and crashed into the wall much harder.
He also tried to get into Phelps? head, saying it was the American?s own fault for sticking with a Speedo suit that isn?t as fast as polyurethane models such as the Arena X-Glide, which Cavic wears.
Phelps set his second world record of the fastest meet in history and got back the mark Cavic snatched away a night earlier with a time of 51.01 in the semifinals.
Phelps also won his fourth gold medal of the championships.
Three other world records were set Saturday, bringing the total to 39 with one day left at the final meet for high-tech bodysuits. Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe took down her own mark in the 200 backstroke, winning in 2 minutes, 4.81 seconds.
China sets 39th
world record
China claimed the record in the women?s 400-meter medley relay. Li Zhesi finished it off in 3:52.19 to beat the mark set by Australia (3:52.69) at the Beijing Olympics.
In a semifinal heat of a non-Olympic event, Britain?s Liam Tancock set a world record of 24.08 in the 50 backstroke. /AP
