BEIJING — Kosuke Kitajima remains on target for an unprecedented repeat double in the Olympic men's breaststroke competition.
Kitajima, Monday's champion in the 100-meter breast, cruised into the final of the 200 breast by winning the first semifinal on Wednesday morning at the Water Cube.
Kitajima led from start to finish, clocking a winning time of 2 minutes, 8.61 seconds. He put himself in the driver's seat by posting the day's quickest split time over a 50-meter distance, 2916 seconds to begin the race. His splits over final three 50-meter distances were as follows: 32.34, 32.83 and 34.28.