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Swimming at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Women's 800 metre freestyle
The women's 800 metre freestyle event at the 2000 Summer Olympics took place on 21–22 September at the Sydney International Aquatic Centre in Sydney, Australia.[1] United States' teenager Brooke Bennett became the second swimmer in Olympic history to defend her title in the event, and the fifth to strike a long-distance freestyle double, since Debbie Meyer did so in 1968, Petra Thümer in 1976, Tiffany Cohen in 1984, and the legendary Janet Evans in 1988. She maintained a powerful lead from start to finish before hitting the wall first in 8:19.67, the second-fastest of all time, cutting off Evans' 12-year Olympic record by 0.53 seconds.[2][3][4] After effortlessly striking a medley double over the past six days, Yana Klochkova added a silver to her medal tally at these Games, in a scintillating Ukrainian record of 8:22.66. Bennett's teammate Kaitlin Sandeno gave the Americans a further reason to celebrate, as she powered home with a bronze in 8:24.29.[5][6] Switzerland's Flavia Rigamonti lost a spirited challenge to Sandeno for the bronze by more than a full body length, but earned a fourth spot in a national record of 8:25.91. She was followed in fifth by Germany's Hannah Stockbauer (8:30.11), and in sixth by China's Chen Hua (8:30.58). Stockbauer's teammate Jana Henke (8:31.97), bronze medalist in Barcelona eight years earlier, and Japan's Sachiko Yamada (8:37.39) rounded out the finale.[6] RecordsPrior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.
The following new world and Olympic records were set during this competition.
ResultsHeatsFinal
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