South Africa end Phelps medal quest

South Africa ruined Michael Phelps's dream of winning a record eight gold medals at the Athens Olympics with a stunning victory in the men's 4x100 metres freestyle final yesterday.

The South African quartet of Roland Schoeman, Lyndon Ferns, Darian Townsend and Ryk Neethling wiped half a second off the old world record set by Australia at the last Olympics in the first major upset in the Athens Olympic pool.

The United States, hot favourites to win the gold, could only finish third after the Netherlands pipped them for silver.

Phelps had made a perfect start to his bid to better Mark Spitz's record of seven golds at a single Olympics when he broke his own world record to win the 400 individual medley on the opening day of competition.

But his dream ended with the relay loss and his hopes of at least equalling Spitz's 1972 haul also seem to be sinking fast after he only qualified third fastest for today's 200 freestyle final.

Both Dutch defending champion Pieter van den Hoogenband and Australian world record holder Ian Thorpe were quicker than him in qualifying for what has been dubbed the "race of the century".

While Phelps's dreams were shattered, Australia's Petria Thomas continued her fairytale in Athens by collecting her second gold with a surprise win over Inge de Bruijn in the women's 100 butterfly final.

Japan's Kosuke Kitajima and French teenager Laure Manaudou won their first golds.

Kitajima added the Olympic 100 breaststroke title to the world crown he won last year when he edged out American favourite Brendan Hansen.

Manaudou set a European record to win the women's 400 freestyle and provide France with their first female Olympic swimming champion.

Thomas, 28, almost quit swimming after the Sydney Olympics when she needed a full shoulder construction but decided to soldier on in the hope of winning a gold medal.

Dutchwoman de Bruijn was the star of Sydney, winning three gold medals, and she had seemed to have a tight grip on her title when she reached the halfway stage under world record pace before fading as Thomas, then Poland's Otylia Jedrzejczak, surged past her with Thomas winning gold in 57.72.

Jedrzejczak returned to the pool less than an hour later to win silver in the 400 freestyle.

Kitajima had beaten Hansen, who turned 23 yesterday, at last year's world titles but the American was favourite to win in Athens after breaking the world record last month.

Hansen, who had been hoping to celebrate his birthday with a golden present, set out at a cracking pace and was in front halfway down the last lap but Kitajima glided past to win in the last stroke.