A 12-year-old dream became reality for Alexander Popov on Sunday when Russia won their first relay gold medal at the world swimming championships.

Popov, four times an Olympic gold medallist, anchored Russia to first place in the men's 4x100 metres freestyle relay in a championship record of 3:14.06.

"I've been dreaming about this for 11, 12 years, since 1992," said Popov, the motor for Russia's international relay medals since the early 1990s.

Russia's team of Andrei Kapralov, Ivan Usov, Denis Pimankov and Popov finished ahead of the U.S., who were second in 3:14.80. Popov outduelled U.S. anchor Jason Lezak to nail the win and posted a split time of 47.71 seconds before a roaring crowd.

France were third in 3:15.66, with anchor Frederick Bousquet posting the fastest split in the event, a blistering 47.03 seconds.

The win also marks a return to form for Popov, who moved to Switzerland this year after a decade in Australia. He stayed away from the 2001 championships for health reasons and the win was his first international gold medal since 1998.

"It was kind of a forgotten feeling," he told reporters when asked about the victory.

The win was something of a homecoming for Popov since it came in Barcelona, where he won the 50 and 100 metres freestyle gold medals at the 1992 Olympic Games.

"Barcelona will always have a special place in my heart," he said.