LISBON, Dec 11: Sweden's Therese Alshammar and Anna-Karin Kam-merllng broke world records with a pair of supreme swims and then linked up for a sprint relay world best at the European short-course swimming championships on Friday, reports Reuters.

Alshammar eclipsed the 100 metres freestyle mark held for six years by Chinese Olympic champion Le Jingyi while Kammerling broke American Jenny Thompson’s 50 metres butterfly standard which had stood for less than a month.

They then joined up with Johanna Sjoberg and Malin Svahnstrom to bring Sweden a world best time In the women’s 4x50 metres freestyle relay.

Alshammar clocked 52.80 seconds in the blue riband 100 freestyle to wipe out the 53.01 record set by Le In winning the first world short-course title in Palma de Mallorca on December 2. 1993. before the Chinese powerhouse went on to world long-course and Olympic titles.

Alshammar went through the 50-metre mark in 25.30. inside Le's 25.49 Palma split, and surged on for the record.

Defending champion Sue Rolph of Britain took the silver In 53.26 and German Olympic silver medallist Sandra Voelker. Alshammar's training partner in Hamburg and the 1996 European short-course champion, claimed the bronze in 53.34.

”l'm very surprised, shocked in a good way — happy." said •Alshammar. 50 freestyle silver

medallist at the European long-course championships in Istanbul in July.

"1 didn't expect anything, coming in here, out I swam very well in the semifinals — if felt easy and relaxed.'

Swedish chief coach Hans Chrunak said: "It's great. I think it's one of the best performances ever in Swedish swimming"

Kammerling followed that with a pulsating victory in the 50 butterfly, sweeping home in 25.64 seconds to beat the record of 26.00 set by Thompson at a World Cup meeting in College Park. Maryland, on November 18. Sjoberg was second in 26.42.

"I expected to win but I didn't expect to swim that fast... The goal was to set a new world record, maybe 25.9 or something," Kammerling said.

The Swedes wrapped up a great day — which also included a gold medal for world short-course champion Lars Frolan-der in the men's 100 metres butterfly— by taking the seldom-swum 4x50 freestyle women's relay in one minute 38.45 seconds.

Silver medallists Germany clocked 1:39.21 and were also inside the 1:39.56 mark a German quartet set last December.

"Before the 100 freestyle I was very nervous and tense but afterwards I had nothing to lose and 1 Just swam for the relay — Just everything flew." said Alshammar, who swam the fastest split of 23.80 in the relay.

Frolander deposed James Hickman as 100 butterfly champion, seizing an early lead and repelling the Briton's challenge to reyerse the order of last year's duel in Sheffield. Frol-

ander won in 51.19. with Hickman second in 51.43.

But Britain's Mark Foster retained his 50 metres freestyle crown, beating the formidable Pieter van den Hoogenband.

Foster, who only just qualified for the semifinals, won in 21.71. with Van den Hoogenband. who retained his 200 freestyle title on Thursday, second in 21.79.

"He’s never beaten me in short-course and he never will. He’s not an explosive sprinter," said Foster. 29. Lorenzo Vis-mara of Italy took the bronze in 21.83.

Foster and Vismara were nearly eliminated in the morning's heats. Foster making the cut by a mere 0.05 seconds and Vismara — 16th and last se.nl-final qualifier — by just 0.03.

Germany's Anne Poleska Eulled off a major coup bv eating world long-coui»e champion Agnes Kovacs with a superb late attack in the women s 200 metres breaststroke.

The Hungarian, triple gold medallist at the European long-course championships, settled for her second silver.

Ukraine's Jana Klochkova scooped her second gold, following up Thursday s 400 individual medley win by deposing Switzerland's Flavia Rigamonti as 800 freestyle champion. Rigamonti was second, more than three seconds behind.

Italy s Massimo Rosolino followed Thursday's 200 freestyle silver with gold In the 400 freestyle, Russian-born Nina Zhivanevskaya won the 100 backstroke for her new country Spain and Iceland's Orn Arnarson retained his 200 backstroke title.