Olympic 200m freestyle champion Mollie O’Callaghan and fellow Olympic gold medallist Meg Harris secured places in Australia’s women’s 100m freestyle team on Friday as the country’s swimming trials continued to produce standout performances ahead of the Commonwealth Games and Pan Pacific Championships.
O’Callaghan, one of Australia’s biggest swimming stars, lived up to expectations by winning the event in 52.33 seconds, while 50m freestyle world champion Harris finished second in 52.63 seconds to book her place on the national team.
Shayna Jack came third and Alex Perkins fourth, with all four swimmers expected to form part of Australia’s formidable women’s 4x100m freestyle relay squad. The team has dominated the event for more than a decade and currently holds both Olympic and world titles.
The six-day Australian trials, which conclude on Saturday, serve as qualifying events for next month’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Pan Pacific Championships in Irvine, California, in August.
In the men’s events, Queensland freestyle sensation Sam Short continued his remarkable week by completing a clean sweep of the freestyle distances. The 22-year-old stormed to victory in the 1,500m freestyle in 14:42.09, setting a blistering pace through the first 1,000 metres before fading slightly in the closing stages.
Short had already posted the fastest 800m freestyle time since the now-banned supersuit era of 2009. He also recorded a personal best in the 400m freestyle, ranking as the 10th fastest performance in history, and added victory in the 200m freestyle.
Tokyo Olympic champion Zac Stubblety-Cook also impressed, producing a powerful finish to win the men’s 200m breaststroke in 2:08.92 ahead of Bailey Lello.
In the women’s 200m breaststroke, Ella Ramsay led from the front to qualify fastest with a time of 2:24.04, narrowly edging Tara Kinder.
Se-Bom Lee rounded off the day’s notable performances by winning the men’s 200m backstroke in 1:56.75.
(The Whistler)
