Hakimuddin sinks without any trace of fight

Sydney: Four times national champion Shabbir Habibulla Hakimuddin swam into wilderness failing to qualify in the first heat of 200m freestyle swimming competition of the 27th Olympic Games on Sunday.

Pusan Asian Championship bronze medallist Hakimuddin clocked 1:58.35 to finish fourth in a group of five men. Oleg Tsvetkovskiy of Uzbekistan was first with 1:54.93. Mahmoud Elwany of Egypt was second with 1:55.19.

The twenty one-year-old engineering college student from Bangalore had come closest to the qualifying mark in the 200m freestyle event by clocking 1:56.11 in Pusan clipping 2.21 seconds off his own national record. The qualifying mark for the Olympics stood at 1:55.32.

Hakimuddin qualified as every country was given one free entry in both men's and women's events. He has been the national champion for the past four years in the event.

However, Hakimuddin was aware of his limitations and candidly admitted before the start of the competition that he had no chance of winning a medal. ''It was a great feeling to be in the Olympics. Simply awe-inspiring,'' he said.

UNI