James Magnussen has smashed his personal best and set the quickest international time of 2011 to win the men’s 100m freestyle
James Magnussen has smashed his personal best and set the quickest international time of 2011 to win the men’s 100m freestyle at the Telstra Australian Swimming Championships in Sydney.
The 19-year-old from Port Macquarie stormed home in the final 50 metres to win his first Australian title, touching in 48.29 to beat his previous best by 0.39 of a second and finish ahead of 19-year-old James Roberts (48.72) and Olympic silver medallist Eamon Sullivan (48.89).
Sullivan, who is the former world record holder and third quickest of all-time over the distance, led at the turn, but Magnussen proved too strong at the back end of the race after turning in fifth position at the 50m.
Coached by Brant Best and a NSWIS scholarship holder, Magnussen was anchor of Australia’s gold medal men’s 4 x 100m relay team at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, but with this victory he has now secured his first individual swim at an international meet.
Magnussen will be joined in the men’s 100m freestyle at the FINA World Championships in Shanghai by Roberts, while Sullivan, Victorian Matt Targett (48.91) and 24-year-old Matthew Abood (48.95) all qualified as part of the 4 x 100m relay squad.
Magnussen, who is coincidently born on the exact same day as Roberts, said he came into the meet confident of victory.
“For the past year I’ve been thinking about this race and thought I had a good chance of winning it,” Magnussen said. “It’s been my aim since Commonwealth Games anyway to win this race and it’s amazing to come out and do it.
“I’ve got complete faith in my back end speed and I knew if I was within striking distance of the boys I could get them. I possibly went out a bit harder than I have before but I was able to hang on for the finish.”
Five-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist Alicia Coutts continued her sublime form by setting the fastest time in the semi-finals of the women’s 100m freestyle.
Coutts was only 0.15 of a second shy of her best time over the distance, stopping the clock in 54.27 and qualifying well inside Emily Seebohm’s title winning time of 54.70 from last year.
Queenslander Yolane Kukla (54.49) went stroke-for-stroke with Coutts in the semi-final to qualify in second place, while Bronte Barratt (54.72), who has finished second in both the 200m and 400m freestyle this week, recorded the third quickest time.
The AIS-based Coutts said she felt as though she was still adapting to her new found event.
“I never thought I’d be winning a 100m freestyle,” Coutts said.
“That was a big surprise in India last year, and it was again nice to touch first tonight.”
In other results...
Men’s 200m Individual Medley Final
Queenslander Mitch Larkin flew home in the freestyle leg of the men’s 200m IM to snare his maiden pair of Australian Speedo’s, ahead of the Shanghai world championship in July. Kenneth To went out hard in the butterfly, backstroke and breaststroke legs to hold a commanding 2.19 second lead over the 2010 Junior Pan Pacs silver medallist, but the 17-year-old Larkin chased down To, winning in a time of 1:59.42.
To, a Youth Olympic Games silver medallist from 2010, finished second in 2:00.05, while Brisbane’s five-time defending champion Leith Brodie (2:00.15) rounded out the top three.
Women’s 200m Butterfly Final
Olympic and Commonwealth Games gold medallist Jessicah Schipper has secured her seventh straight Australian title in the women’s 200m butterfly in a time of 2:07.78.
Schipper showed her experience at the death to win her 11th Australian title, despite strong challenges from triple Olympic gold medallist Stephanie Rice (2:07.87) and 2010 Pan Pacs silver medallist Samantha Hamill (2:08.79).
Women’s 50m Backstroke Final
2010 Pan Pac tyro Grace Loh won her first Australian title this evening, taking out the final of the women’s 50m backstroke in a new personal best time of 28.15. Loh showed her rapid rise in the women’s backstroking ranks to lead home Commonwealth Games champion Sophie Edington (28.20) and Belinda Hocking (28.33), who claimed the final of the women’s 100m backstroke earlier in the meet.
Swimmers qualified to date for the 14th FINA World Championships in Shanghai:
MEN:
Ryan Napoleon – 400m free
Thomas Fraser-Holmes – 400m free
Brenton Rickard – 100m breaststroke
Christian Sprenger – 100m breaststroke
Thomas Fraser-Holmes – 200m freestyle
Ben Treffers – 100m backstroke
Hayden Stoeckel – 100m backstroke
Mitch Larkin – 200m IM
James Magnussen – 100m freestyle
James Roberts – 100m freestyle
WOMEN:
Bronte Barratt – 400m free
Kylie Palmer – 400m free
Alicia Coutts – 100m butterfly, 200m IM
Stephanie Rice – 100m butterfly, 200m IM
Belinda Hocking – 100m backstroke
Emily Seebohm – 100m backstroke
Melissa Gorman – 1500m freestyle
Jessica Ashwood – 1500m freestyle
Leisel Jones – 100m breaststroke
Sarah Katsoulis – 100m breaststroke
Jessicah Schipper – 200m butterfly
Swimming Australia
