Rebecca Soni strikes gold in 200-meter breaststroke

She did it — again.

Rebecca Soni, who set a world record in the 200-meter breaststroke semifinal heat on Wednesday night, struck gold Thursday in London. Not only did she win the gold, she broke her own world record turning in a time of 2:19.59.

“It’s been my goal since I was a little kid to go under 2:20,” Soni told USA Today. “That’s what my coach told me: ‘You’re going to be the first woman to go under 2:20.’”

Well, that dream is now a reality. The victory comes on the heels of a disappointing silver medal finish in the 100-meter breaststroke earlier this week, an event she was heavily favored in.

But the 200 is Soni’s best event — she won gold in the 200 at the 2008 Beijing Games — and the one she concentrated the hardest on in her pre-Olympic training. And it showed big time.

Soni led wire-to-wire in the 200, leaving Japan’s Satomi Suzunki to settle for silver, more than a second (2:20.72) behind her wake. Russia’s Yulia Efimova earned the bronze in 2:20.92.

Soni came to London with a chance to claim three golds. While the Plainsboro (N.J.) native won’t accomplish that feat, she’ll go for a second one in the women’s medley relay Saturday.