Lukas Märtens led the first final of the World swimming championships in Singapore on a roller-coaster ride that ended with victory by 0.02sec for the German Olympic champion over Australia's Sam Short, 3:42.35 to 3:42.37.

That made it gold No5 for Germany and coach Bernd Berkhahn at the performance-centre home of his Magdeburg Might: Florian Wellbrock claimed a record four golds in the open water events that ended a week ago out at Sentosa.

Korea's Kim Woomin was just 0.25sec away for bronze, in 3:42.60:

All medalists were slower than Short's 3:42.07 earlier in the day when he clocked the fastest heats time in history. It was also slower than the 3:40.68 the Australian clocked for the crown at Fukuoka 2023, when Märtens claimed bronze in 3:42.20, the silver to the Tunisian Ahmed Hafnaoui, absent from Singapore while serving a suspension for missing three out-of-competition anti-doping controls.

And, of course, slower than Märtens pioneering sub-3:40 World record set outside the pressure pot of title chasing at the Stockholm Open in April:

Märtens Takes Down Shiny Biedermann & Textile Thorpe With Game-Changing 3:39.96 WR In Stockholm 400 Free

What it took for Lukas Märtens to break Paul Biedermann’s Word record: at 51.90 he matched Mark Spitz’s first 100m free World record in 1970; at 1:47.55, he matched the third of Michael The Albatross Gross’ 200m free World records, from 1984

State Of Swimming +Craig Lord

So, slower - but no less thrilling. Indeed, it was a push-me/pull-me affair, neither Märtens nor Short prepared to yield when challenged by the other.

The German ace sprang a first-length sprint surprise to get the roller-coaster started and had a lead of more than a bodylength at the 100m turn, 0.51sec up on Short. Off the 150m turn, we go a glimpse of what would eventually win it for Märtens: his brilliant drive off the wall and break into a long, limbering stroke that belies the power of his pull beneath the wash made up for the tiny edge Short had on the swim chasing his quarry.

At 200m, the gap between the top two was just 0.19sec, Märtens on 1:48.34 Kim almost a second back in fourth a fraction behind Bulgarian Petar Mitsin.

Then the race shifted. Short struck back down the fifth length and held the lead for the last three turns of the race, Märtens faltering for less than the fleeting sense of Short making a break for it. That sense faded as quickly as it had come, the Olympic champion refusing to yield.

Feet on the wall through those last turns, it was Short first by 0.15, then 0.24, then 0.06. It was then that Märtens' superior drive off the wall shone through and lent him the wave own which he drew level with Short and gained an edge barely tangible but no less real for that, all the way to the end wall, the German's longer reach coupled to a fortune of timing to grant him the decisive difference of just 0.02sec.

The neck and neck turned to three necks stretching and arms reaching for the end wall in the closing few metres as Kim crashed home for bronze.

Just shy of the podium and setting his second Swedish record of the day was Victor Johansson, who in the past couple of years has taken down a national mark that stood between 1992 and 2024: Anders Holmertz was the man - and he clocked 3:46.77 at the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games for bronze. Here's he what Johansson has carved out in the past couple of seasons beyond many others of work towards it:

A touch of history and quotes from the medallists follow...