By Lal Kwok Kin

SEOUL, Reuter: If Janet Evans, the American girl who won three gold medals at the Seoul Olympics, were to swim against Malaysian star Jeffrey Ong in the 400 meters freestyle, she would beat him

The yawning gap between Asia and the best from Europe and the United States became apparent at the Seoul Olympics as World records tumbled.

‘The 4:03.85 World Record of the waiflike Evans, 17, in the 400 free beat Ong’s time in the heats by nearly one second and trailed Asia’s fastest man, Yoshiyuki Mizimoto of Japan, by just under two seconds.

No Asian qualified for the men’s 400, won in a World Record 3:46.95 by East Germany’s Uwe Dassler who would have touched home just as Sri Lanka’s Julian Bolling was turning for his final length.

While many Asians have set national bests and one even bettered an Asian record, only Japan has been able to break the stranglehold of Western dominance by taking the Lone Asian swimming gold

Daichi Suzuki defeated world record holder “submarine” David Berkoff in the Men’s 100 meters backstroke, swimming underwater for the first 35 meters like the ‘American,

Chinese women took home three silvers and a bronze, Japan a bronze, while other Asians have had to go home empty handed despite clocking personal bests,

China’s Huang Xiaomin smashed the Olympic and her own Asian records on Wednesday to clock 2:27.49 in the 200 meters breaststroke final in which she finished second behind East German Silke Hoerner.

David Lim broke the Sinapore record in the 200 meters free and 100 meters backstroke in the heats but failed to qualify for the final.

His compatriot Ang Peng Siong, Asia’s fastest in the 50 meters free and former World Record Holder in the event, failed to qualify for the final won by Matt Biondi of the United States who set a world record of 22.14 seconds.

‘Ang, who trained three months in Mission Viejo, California under a U.S. coach before the Olympics, said most Asian countries lagged behind the West in research in training methods.

But Chief British Coach Paul Hickson said training methods were quite open now. “It’s largely history. Swimmers in the West have been training in greater numbers than in Asia for a longer time. It is a question of Asian countries placing swimming as priority, building more pools and training youngsters

“I see no reason why Asian swimmers can’t compete with the rest of the world. Asians obviously have talent and Tam very impressed with the Chinese this time,” Hickson said.

He said the smaller Asian physique was not a major setback except in the shorter swims such as the 50 and 100 meters freestyle, where a longer reach helps.

Article extracted from this publication >> October 21, 1988