Japanese breaststroke specialist Kosuke Kitajima saw a huge block appear between him and his goal of winning the gold medal at the Athens Olympics when Brendan Hansen of the United States broke his two world records.
Just about a month before the 28th Summer Games kick off, Hansen clocked the world's fastest times in the men's 100- and 200-meter breaststroke at the U.S. Olympic trials in Long Beach, Calif., emerging as a strong favorite to win the events in Greece.
"I look forward to being able to compete with him (at the Olympics)," Kitajima, who set world records in the two events at last summer's World Championships in Barcelona, Spain, said after Hansen clocked 59.30 seconds in the 100 on July 8 to shave 0.48 off Kitajima's time.