THERE’S JUST three years to go until the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham – and Team England’s swimmers have begun building a solid base at the Aquatics World Championships in South Korea.
Leading the pack has been Adam Peaty – who holds the world record for the 50m and 100m breaststroke and is the current Commonwealth, Olympic, World and European champion for the 100m too.
Peaty had a spectacular 100m semi-final, in which he broke his own record – becoming the first man to break the 57 second barrier. He went on to win the 50m breaststroke – the third World Championship gold of his career.
At that stage, Peaty told British Swimming that he had completed everything he wanted to do. He must have changed his mind: on Sunday he won another gold medal, this one in the men’s medley relay – with the team winning a new European record as they powered forward.
Britain’s 4x100m mixed medley relay team were also medal winners – taking the bronze medal, with Peaty taking the anchor leg. Medley team member James Guy told BBC Sport that he believed the team was heading to Tokyo for the 2020 Olympics with every chance of challenging for Olympic gold.
There was also success in the backstroke – with Luke Greenbank beating his previous personal best and winning a bronze in the 200m.
Swimming giants the USA topped the medal table with 13 golds. Great Britain finished in seventh place, with seven medals – three of them gold. It was a creditable performance from some key competitors, and Britain’s climate doesn’t make us a natural swimming nation. With austerity restricting access to swimming pools and school swimming lessons, the authorities must be wondering where the next generation of swimmers will be coming from.
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