After cracking out the world's best 50m freestyle time this season, a 21.19 at the start of the 4x50m free relay yesterday, Sergey Fesikov confirmed his speed with a sizzling 21.09 victory in the solo dash at Russian short-course nationals in Volgograd.

Victory for Fesikov, coached by Andrea di Nino, earned him selection for the European short-course Championships in Poland next month. Fesikov's time enters the top 10 of men in a textile suit, a list headed by the 20.51 of world champion Cesar Cielo (BRA) from december last year.

Fesikov is now approaching the times he clocked when non-textile suits were allowed. With nine efforts between 20.83 and 21.12 in 2009, the 20-year-old had a textile best of 21.23 from world s/c titles in Dubai a year ago.

The closest Europeans to the Russian pace-setter in the lead-up to the clash in Poland this season are Italians Marco Orsi (21.44) and Luca Dotto (21.50) and Finland's Ari-Pekka Liukkonen (21.46).

Two other men reached the podium with sub-22sec efforts in Volgograd, though Fesikov was a class apart. The silver went to Evgeny Lagunov, on 21.67, the bronze to Andrey Grechin, on 21.88.

In other action, Elena Sokolova fended off a challenge from Elizabeta Gorshkova to take the 800m freestyle at the touch on 8:29.49 to 8:29.60, the silver medallist having clawed back 3sec in the second half of the race she swam in 4:14 and 4:15. The bronze went to Yana Martynova in 8:39.16.

In a men's 100m butterfly final that went without world record holder Evgeny Korotyshkin, Fesikov's ADN Project training partner and already selected for action in Poland next month, Nikolay Skvortsov overhauled two ahead of him at half-way to snatch the crown in 51.28, 0,05sec up on Nikita Konovalov. The bronze went to 19-year-old Dimitri Pokotylo in 52.50.

Margarita Nesterova and Viktoriya Andreeva battled stroke for stroke in the 100m freestyle before the clock favoured Nesterova 54.03 to 54.11, the bronze going to an 800m winner still recovering from her first podium visit of the session, Elena Sokolova, on 54.71.

In a similarly tight tussle, Stanislav Lakhtyukhov and Vyacheslav Sinkevich raced twin-like to a 58.19 to 58.33 split by the end of the 100m breaststroke final. Lakhtyukhov, a touch ahead of Sinkevich on 27.39 at half-way, held on for the crown. Sergey Geybel, 30, took bronze in 58.92.

European champion Anastasia Chaun was given a scare by Vera Kalashnikova in the 200m breaststroke, the 19-year-old challenger leading the race until the last 50m, when Chaun clawed back a 1.5sec deficit with a 35.57 closing split that granted her the crown by just 0.03sec in 2:21.81. The bronze went to Irina Novikova in 2:27.67.

Mikhail Polischuk took the 400m freestyle in 3:41.54. Until 300m, Nikita Lobintsev led the way but over the next 50m, Polischuk not only made up a 0.64sec deficit but got 1.21sec beyond the seasoned international and drew Alexander Selin  with him, leaving Lobintsev in third and fading. Selin took silver in 3:42.65, Lobintsev on 3:45.28, just in time to save the bronze by 0.3sec as Evgeny Kulikov completed his last 100m 4sec faster than Lobintsev managed.

World 50m champion Anastasia Zueva made her status felt in the 100m backstroke, a 57.65 victory lifting her to sixth in the world so far this season on her way to Europe's winter showcase in Poland next month. The silver went to Ksenia Moskvina in 58.83, bronze to Mariya Gromova in 59.55, that locking out Alexandra Papusha, on 59.68.

Artem Dubovskoy was first to get his hand to the wall in a 200m backstroke battle that ended with five men within 0.79sec of each other. Dubovskov, on 1:54.59 held off a fast finish from the man fifth at the 150m mark but good for silver by the end, Sergey Makov on 1:54.91. The battle for bronze went to Vitaly Melnikov in 1:55.00, 0.07sec ahead of Mikhail Zvyagin, with Anton Anchin a further 0.31sec adrift.

In the women's butterfly dash, Anastasia Lyazeva took the title in 26.34 ahead of Vasilisa Vladykina, on 26.52, and Iriona Bespalova, on 26.67.

The session came to a close with victory for St Petersburg in the 4x50m free for women, their 1:40.15 keeping at bay Moscow, on 1:41.57, and Penza, on 1:42.23.