Rebecca Soni, a surprise gold medalist in Beijing, is a favorite in the 100- and 200-meter breaststroke.

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Also on Thursday, American Rebecca Soni won the 200-meter breast stroke in 2:19.59, beating her own world record of 2:20.00, set Wednesday in the semifinals.

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She gave way to Rebecca Soni, Dana Vollmer and finally Allison Schmitt, who touched the wall at 3:52:05, nipping 14 hundredths of a second off the previous record.

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