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Coughlin breaks 200 breast record Posted: Tuesday November 27, 2001 10:09 PMEAST MEADOW, New York (AP) -- Natalie Coughlin, the NCAA swimmer of the year, set the world record in the 200-meter breaststroke Tuesday night, finishing in 2 minutes, 3.52 seconds in the FINA World Cup. "I saw that I was ahead, but I did not see by how much," she said. "The last 18 months have been amazing ... and I have been loving every minute of it." The California sophomore beat the mark of 2:04.44, set Aug. 6 by Sarah Price of Britain, at the Nassau County Aquatics Center. "It was really, really surprising. I didn't expect this," the 19-year-old Coughlin said. "All I was trying to do was work on my stroke and my underwaters." Coughlin has had lots of success in the Long Island pool she called "my lucky one." She won three times there last March during the NCAA championships. "That led to my being swimmer of the year," Coughlin said, "and there's nothing better than that." Neil Walker, the two-time silver medalist in last year's Olympics, won the 100 backstroke and the 100 individual medley in the opening day of the meet. Walker, 25, just returned to competition following a four-week layoff after he was married Sept. 15. He was never challenged in the backstroke and won in 50.75 seconds, well off his world record time of 50.75 set in March 2000. Walker took the medley in 54.22, again slower than his world record mark of 52.79. "I'm still trying to get back in competitive shape," Walker said. "Things were hectic in planning the wedding, so my training suffered." Jason Lezak, a gold and silver medalist in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, kept Walker from three wins by taking the 100 freestyle in 47.67 seconds. Michael Gilliam was second, and Walker settled for third in 48.46. "I was swimming catch-up against Jason," Walker said. "I let him get off to a fast start, and in such a short race you can't do that."
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