Thiago Pereira of Brazil added on more gold to his tally after winning the men's 200m backstroke final at the 15th Pan American Games on Thursday.
Pereira was timed at one minute 58.42 seconds for the title, beating Scott Clary of the United States to the second place at 1: 59.24. Lacas Salatta of Brazil touched home third at 1:59.51.
"I've just left the podium and I'm already thinking about the other events. I'm very focused and doing my best in each event. So far, I've taken part in three events, won three gold medals and I've beaten three records. I'm very happy with the results."
Pereira will compete in five more events and it seems quite possible for him to win more than five gold medals at one Pan American Games, a record set by American Mark Spitz 40 years ago.
The other three events of the day were all won by Americans. Michelle McKeehan won the women's 100m breaststroke at 1:08.49, Julia Smit took the gold of women's 100m backstroke at 1:02.01 and then helped the American quartet to win the women's 4X100 freestyle relay at 3:41.97.
"I'm very happy with the gold medal," said Julia Smit. "In the beginning, we had some problems, but we went on and I am very proud of our team."
"When I hear the crowd screaming up there, I do as a friend of mine: I pretend they are cheering for me."
Michelle McKeehan said she hopes to take part in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing: "We'll see what happens in Beijing. We can't make a forecast yet, but I expect to achieve the Olympic index and to be part of the American team next year."
Fabiola Molina of Brazil, the silver medalist in the women's 100m backstroke, also expressed her wish to go to Beijing Olympics: "In swimming, it is not always possible to do everything perfectly. Perhaps I would have been able to reach the index for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing if I had repeated the performance."
Until Thursday, the United States leads the swimming medal table with 8 gold, 7 silver and 3 bronze medals, followed closely by Brazil with 6 gold, 3 silver and 4 bronze medals. Canada places third at 1-2-5.
Source: Xinhua
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