Three times silver in one run, with Kamminga a smiling third

It’s a good thing that the Swimming World Cup podium has large dimensions. Three men climbed the second-highest step at the 100-meter breaststroke medal ceremony in Japan on Monday. The radiant Arno Kamminga was flanked by the Italian Nicolò Martinenghi and the American Nic Fink.

The trio clocked exactly the same time in the two-lane breaststroke event: 58.72 seconds. New world champion Haiyang Qin of China was over a second faster (57.69). World record holder Adam Peaty is out of the World Cup due to burnout.

In recent history, it has happened once that three swimmers shared the silver medal in a major tournament. During the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, illustrious butterfly specialists Michael Phelps, László Cseh and Chad Le Clos stood side by side on the silver step.

Munich 1972

Unlike sports like skating and track and field, swimming competitions have not been measured in thousandths of a second for 50 years, but in hundredths. The world swimming federation Fina decided to make this adjustment after the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, where two men swam simultaneously in the 400 meter medley. After a stalemate of several minutes, the Swede Gunnar Larsson – two thousandths of a second – was finally declared the winner. To avoid such situations, and taking into account the margin of error, Fina has decided to register now for hundredths.

Kamminga erred on Monday saying he had to share his silver podium with two competitors. “Money is money,” said the 27-year-old who took second place with an impressive effort in the final fifteen meters. He said he didn’t know if he would also have finished second with a thousandth-of-a-second record. “Swimmers also only see time in hundredths. After all, thousandths don’t look at each other, so I don’t care.

Coach Mark Faber’s pupil called it a miracle that he was “at all able to compete for medals with the best breaststroke swimmers in the world,” a elated Kamminga said by phone from Japan on Monday. These are remarkable words from Kamminga’s mouth.

The Dutchman is known to always race only for gold. The double Olympic silver medalist in Tokyo is a man full of bravery. Even in his Olympic debut two years ago, he said conclusively that he would “step on the block for the win”. But after a year full of setbacks, Kamminga’s bravado gave way to modesty and realism.

burnt

Due to illness and a busy schedule, the Netherlands’ best breaststroke swimmer of all time was pushed back far to the summer of 2022. “I was no longer a shadow of myself, I was physically and mentally exhausted.” During the World Cup in Budapest last June, Kamminga was very ill at the start of the 100 meters breaststroke. With his last strength, he took the silver medal behind the Italian Martinenghi.

At the European Championships two months later, the Katwijker wanted to start against his better judgment, but after the first race it turned out that the pipe was empty. “My body made it clear to me that I had to hit the brakes, I had to do everything.”

Kamminga was hard to find in the training pool for six months. He spent around three hours a week in the water at the Sloterparkbad, compared to around 20 hours in normal training weeks. “It was a rotten time,” Kamminga turned around. “I wanted nothing more than to swim and compete. I found it difficult to look aside, but I really needed a rest.

Kamminga has only been training again since January this year. Heading into the World Cup in Fukuoka, he had no idea where he stood. “Normally I race to win, but now I really didn’t know what I would be worth. I’ve come this far… The fact that I’m in such good shape after a short preparation is really amazing,” he said on Monday. Kamminga will also be in action this week in the 200-metre breaststroke and the relays.

His silver medal gives Kamminga confirmation that he has made the right turn en route to next year’s Olympics. “In Paris, I came back to 100%. I have no doubt about it. Kamminga is back and so is his bravado.