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Golden double for SA swimmers in Birmingham

commonwealth games30 July 2022 21:50| © SuperSport
By:Karien Jonckheere
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Two Pretoria teenagers ensured Team South Africa finished day two of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on the medal table.

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Lara van Niekerk claimed the first medal of the Games and made sure it was a gold by powering to victory in the 50m breaststroke in yet another Commonwealth Games record time of 29.73 seconds.

The other South Africans in the final, Tatjana Schoenmaker and Kaylene Corbett, whose focus is on the longer distance breaststroke events, finished fourth and sixth respectively.

Later in the evening 18-year-old Pieter Coetzé began his quest for triple gold at these Games by claiming victory in the 100m backstroke in 53.78 seconds, .13 of a second ahead of England’s Brodie Williams and .28 ahead of Australian Bradley Woodward.

Van Niekerk was thrilled with her swim, coming within one hundredth of a second of the African record she set at the National Championships earlier in the year.

“It felt amazing, the crowd was going wild, so I knew it was going to be close. But I was just happy that I could swim the second fastest time I’ve ever done and to win a medal is a bonus so I’m super-happy,” she said afterwards.

Speaking about the race itself, she added: “I’m always a bit behind on the start – we still have to work on that – but I just knew to keep my head in the games and not let it freak me out.”

As for the prospect of another medal in the 100m breaststroke, the 19-year-old reckoned: “I just want to go and enjoy it. The pressure is off now so I’m just going to have fun and do my best.”

Coetzé said he had been boosted by Van Niekerk’s victory earlier in the evening.

“I was in the athletes’ area and watching on TV and it was very inspiring to see her breaking the record for a third time. We’re close friends and I’m just so happy for her… It’s great to see my friend succeed,” said the 18-year-old.

Speaking about his own race, he explained: “I’ve never been out that fast, so I was happy with the opening speed but I was hurting a bit more than usual coming back… It was definitely a bit closer than I expected and I was definitely expecting to go a bit faster than the semi, but my coach told me it’s not about times at all, it’s just about getting the win. It’s my first international medal and it’s amazing to get a gold.

“I’ve been doing some more distance training. So I actually think the 50 and the 200m will look better than the 100,” he added, alluding to the fact that he’s aiming for a clean sweep of the backstroke golds.

Coetzé’s coach Rocco Meiring admitted afterwards: “I was very nervous. But I knew they would have to be at their best to beat him because he was very determined so I’m very grateful.”

As for the prospect of two more golds from his swimmer, he added: “You can’t be overconfident. He’s a young guy and he’s among the main guys now so we’ll just have to go one race at a time and see how he’s progressing and try not to get ahead of ourselves.”

Meanwhile, Matt Sates’s gruelling schedule caught up with him slightly. He finished sixth in the 200m freestyle final and then fourth in the 400m individual medley and admitted afterwards that doubling up was perhaps a little ambitious.

“I was so tired – especially swimming the 200 and 400 heats this morning as well but next time I’ll probably be more specific and choose between them,” he said, adding that he’s still hoping for better in the 200m individual medley.

Emma Chelius and Erin Gallagher (50m freestyle), Brenden Crawford (100m breaststroke) and Rebecca Meder (100m backstroke) all progressed to their respective finals.

Speaking just after her race, Chelius said: “In Budapest at the World Championships I raced just before Lara and she said I must heat up the pool for her, so this time round I said it was her turn to heat it up for me. I’m so proud of her.”

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