Brazil – On Saturday, the Australian Team won gold in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay. Meanwhile, in the women’s 400 meters individual medley, the Hungarian Katinka Hosszu also won gold, her first medal in her fourth Olympics and the men’s Australia won its second gold in the hands of Mack Horton.
This is Australia’s second consecutive gold medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay. The victory was possible thanks to the team’s anchor, Cate Campbell, 24, who led Madison Wilson, Brittany Elmslie, and Bronte Campbell.
The team set a new Olympic record, overturning their previous mark. Campbell had already won two bronze medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics and a gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
The U.S. Team
The American team finished next, a whole second after. The silver was awarded to Dana Vollmer, Simone Manuel, Katie Ledecky and Abbey Weitzel. Still, the team surpassed their 2012 Olympics mark in three seconds.
Ledecky’s post in the Team was unknown, since, in June, she finished seventh at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
The swimmers gave an interview to NBC stating she had ‘no nerves at all’ and that the relay being the first race made it ‘so much fun’.
The bronze went to the Canadian team, composed by Penelope Oleksiak, Sandrine Mainville, Taylor Ruck and Chantal Van Landeghem.
Final results:
Australia: 3:30.65
United States: 3:31.89
Canada: 3:32.89
Netherlands: 3:33.81
Sweden: 3:35.90
Italy 3:36.78
France: 3:37.45
Japan: 3:37.78
Men’s 400 meters freestyle
Mack Horton, 20, won gold against Chinese Sun Yang, in what he called “a victory for the good guys.” In 2014 Yang was banned for three months after testing positive for stimulants.
Horton claimed the youth of all the Australian swimmers ‘brings a lot of potential’ to the team and said they all were in a “very good place,” already doubling the medal tally from the mediocre participation at London 2012. Italian Gabriele Detti won bronze.
Final Results:
Australia: 3:41.55
China: 3:41.68
Italy: 3:43.49
United States: 3:44.01
United States: 3:44.16
Great Britain: 3:44.68
Australia: 3:45.28
France: 3:49.07
Women’s 400 meters individual medley
Katinka Hosszu, 27, known as the Hungarian ‘iron lady,’ also set a new world record and won her first gold medal in the Olympics.
Hosszu had participated previously in Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and London 2012. Her winning mark of four minutes 26.36 seconds overturned Chinese Ye Shiwen record at London.
Madeline “Maya” DiRado, 23, finished second and got the silver medal. Spanish Mireia Belmonte Garcia won the bronze.
Analysis of the fourth place
Rebecca Adlington, who won two gold medals in Beijing 2008, gave an interview to the BBC regarding Scottish Hannah Miley, who finished fourth by inches.
“I am so angry. I was like, ‘Hannah what were you doing?’ In the last 50 metres, she did not breathe and look at Belmonte once […] If you know someone is coming up, you can give that extra tiny bit if you breathe and think ‘she is right there’ […] I am devastated for her because that was her opportunity. All she had to do was breathe once” stated Adlington.
Final Results:
Hungary: 4:26.36
United States: 4:31.15
Spain: 4:32.39
Great Britain: 4:32.54
Canada: 4:34.70
United States: 4:34.98
Great Britain: 4:35.04
Japan: 4:38.06
Sources: BBC