In the past few years, the women’s 200m freestyle event has witnessed an exciting rivalry between Ariarne Titmus and Mollie O’Callaghan. The Olympic champion versus the world champion, the two have exchanged world records and most recently, the Olympic title on Monday night. O’Callaghan’s triumph over Titmus marked the climax of an exhilarating contest between these two exceptional freestyle swimmers.
On Thursday night, competing rivals turned into teammates as Titmus and O’Callaghan brought home gold for Australia, setting a new Olympic record in the women’s 4×200 freestyle relay. This marked the Dolphins’ fifth gold in just six days at the Paris 2024 pool, with three days of competition still ahead.
Joined by Brianna Throssell and Lani Pallister (currently recovering from Covid), the duo from Monday’s individual final showcased an outstanding team performance. Having the gold and silver medalists in the squad was undoubtedly advantageous – O’Callaghan initiated with a blistering time in the first leg, hitting speeds below world record tempo, while Titmus anchored the team to their gold victory.
Australia’s dominance was evident as they led at every turn throughout the 800m relay. Once O’Callaghan was off, the Dolphins were unstoppable. Although China fought back in the second leg with Li Bingjie closing the gap on Pallister, Throssell had to fend off challenges from Chutong Ge and American swimming legend Katie Ledecky.
This is where Titmus came into play. With Australia’s lead slimmed down to under half a second, the Tasmanian swimming star delivered a powerful anchor leg, pursuing the world record line and leaving American finisher Erin Gemmell far behind. Although Titmus just missed out on China’s world record time in the closing meters, the Australians clocked a new Olympic record at 7:38.08, surpassing the Chinese gold medal time from Tokyo by more than two seconds.
This victory marks Australia’s first gold in the women’s 4x200m relay since 2008. The United States finished in second place, while China took home the bronze medal.
This event was a robust demonstration of Australia’s prowess in relay competitions. Head coach Rohan Taylor has expressed his ambition to achieve “seven from seven,” aiming to secure medals in all seven relay events during the program. In Tokyo, the Dolphins finished with six out of seven, missing only in the men’s medley relay (where Australia placed fifth).
Thus far in Paris, the team is on track: gold in the women’s 4×100 freestyle, silver in the men’s 4×100 freestyle on the opening night, followed by bronze in the men’s 4x200m, and now gold in the women’s event. They are currently four for four, with three relays remaining – although the challenge will intensify in the medley relays due to specific stroke weaknesses within the Dolphins squad.
Earlier in the night, rising star from Queensland, Elizabeth Dekkers, finished in a tie for fourth in the women’s 200m butterfly final, while her 19-year-old teammate Abbey Connor placed seventh. Cameron McEvoy, the oldest member of the Dolphins team in Paris and the reigning world champion, was equal-fastest in the men’s 50m final, displaying impressive form ahead of Friday night’s highly anticipated one-lap sprint. Meanwhile, teammate Ben Armbruster missed out on the final, finishing 14th overall.
Kaylee McKeown also continued her strong performance in Paris, qualifying second fastest for the 200m backstroke just two days after winning gold in the 100m event. Unfortunately, Thomas Neill and William Petric faced setbacks, with neither swimmer advancing through the semi-finals of the men’s 200m individual medley.
