( dpa )- Unheralded Australia Eamon Sullivan set a 50-metre freestyle world record on Sunday at Sydney's Olympic Park.
Sullivan, 22, clocked 21.56 seconds in the pool used for the 2000 Olympics, taking .08 seconds off the previous mark of Russian Alexander Popov, whose time of 21.64 seconds was set in Moscow in 2000.
Sullivan, who took nearly a half-second off his personal best time, said he felt good in the warm-up for the one-length race and had been working towards getting under 22 seconds for the first time.
"I just surprised myself," Sullivan said.