Despite the early promise, Australia’s swim team has been left in the wake of the United States yet again at an Olympics – falling agonisingly short of ending the Yanks’ 68-year stranglehold in the pool.
The nations went into the final event – the women’s 4x100m relay – on seven golds each with a showdown to decide the champs of the pool.
The Americans won it emphatically in world record time and Australia claimed silver with Mollie O’Callaghan storming home in the final leg.
The Aussies finished the Games with seven golds, eight silvers and three bronzes, making it Australia’s third-most successful Olympic campaign in the pool. But the only time Australia beat the US on the swimming table at a Games was in 1956 in Melbourne.
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A quiet achiever and three megastars put a finishing silver polish on Australia’s campaign at an Olympic pool.
Unheralded Meg Harris claimed a surprise silver in the women’s 50m freestyle at the La Defense Arena on Sunday night.
Measured by gold, it’s Australia’s third-best haul at an Olympic pool behind the nine golds in Tokyo three years ago and eight golds at the 1956 Melbourne Games.
By overall total, the Dolphins’ 18 medals is also Australia’s equal third-best return.
The nation’s swim team won 21 medals overall in Tokyo, 20 at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and also 18 at the Sydney 2000 Games.
In Paris, the United States again sit at the head of the swimming medal table – a position they have held since 1992 – with eight golds, 13 silver and seven bronze.
Australia’s Dolphins were next-best followed by France, whose face of the Games, Leon Marchand, featured in all four of their gold medals.
In the last races at the Paris pool, Harris was stunned to win her silver behind Sweden’s world-record holder Sarah Sjostrom.
“That was the most fun race I have been a part of,” Harris said.
Shayna Jack, who calls her great mate Harris “the quiet achiever”, finished last in the medal race but felt like a winner.
Jack won two relay golds at her debut Olympics which she described as the opening chapter of her book of redemption – she missed the Tokyo Games having just served a two-year doping ban.
Australia’s medley women’s relayers followed Harris to take silver and further boost the Olympic medal collections of big guns Emma McKeon, Kaylee McKeown and O’Callaghan.
McKeon now retires, remaining Australia’s most successful Olympian with an overall haul of six golds, three silvers and five bronze from three Games.
“It’s not really something I look at,” McKeon said.
“That is what you strive for … but it’s the whole journey along the way that I am going to remember for the rest of my life.”
O’Callaghan won three gold medals in Paris – the women’s 200m freestyle, the 4x100m freestyle and the 4x200m freestyle – for a career total of five at the age of 20.
“It has been an emotional, draining week,” O’Callaghan said.
“I need to have good long break … I need a reset so I can go again.”
And McKeown completed a set of medals from her stunning Games, winning two golds, one silver and a bronze in the French capital.
McKeown became the first swimmer to successfully defend 100m and 200m backstroke Olympic titles.
The 23-year-old is also the first Australian swimmer to win four individual Olympic career gold medals.
“I feel like I am kind of just getting started,” McKeown said.
“I am not sure what this next year will hold for me, probably take a bit of time out from the sport just to mentally refresh.”
Swimming Australia’s head coach Rohan Taylor was proud of his Dolphins pod which dealt with COVID cases throughout the meet.
“We had athletes swim with COVID … I can’t confirm the numbers, that’s a doctor’s thing,” Taylor said.
“We just dealt with it. And that’s the thing I’m the proudest of, is that we took every opportunity to race and compete.”
Twenty-six of Australia’s 41-strong team depart Paris with medals, topped by O’Callaghan’s golden triple treat, a silver and a bronze.
McKeown, Jack and Ariarne Titmus each leave with two golds among their French collections.
Newshttps://https://ift.tt/fn2F6TP in their wake: Aussies fall just short of ending Americans’ 68-year pool dominance – despite silver lining
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