After four days of competition, South Africa’s top athletes displayed no signs of slowing down as the FINA World Championships qualification times continue to pour in at the SA National Aquatic Championships in Durban.
On Thursday there was no stopping Chad le Clos as he raced to his second World Championships qualifying time in his favourite event, the 200-metre butterfly. Now based in Cape Town, Le Clos’ fast time of 1min 55.00sec saw him claim gold, over four seconds ahead of Myles Brown, who ended with a time of 1:59.77. Uitenhage’s Alard Basson was third in 2:03.86.
Cameron van der Burgh was once again in top form as he sped to the finish in the 50m breaststroke, claiming his second gold medal of the championships in 27.17 ahead of Brad Tandy’s 28.16 and Jared Pike’s 28.34, while Tatjana Schoenmaker led the charge in her respective race and emerged with the gold in 31.61, ahead of Kaylene Corbett in 32.02 and Tara-Lynn Nicholas in 32.44.
Rebecca Meder, Kate Beavon and Dune Coetzee were all smiles as they confirmed their FINA Junior World Championships qualification times in the 200m freestyle. Meder won the event in 2:02.94, while Beavon claimed silver in 2:03.13 and Coetzee grabbed fourth in 2:03.90. The bronze went to Nathania van Niekerk, South Africa’s best female swimmer at last year’s Region 5 Games in Angola, in 2:03.57.
Midmar Mile winner Matthew Meyer just missed out on the 800m freestyle World Championships qualification time, as he scooped the gold in 7:54.53, to the required 7:54.31, ahead of Josh Dannhauser in 8:01.02 and Chad Michau (16), who added his name to the Junior World Championships qualification list with a time of 8:22.99.
Mariella Venter booked her second Junior World Championships qualification of the week, this time in the 200m backstroke semi-finals when she clocked 2:13.52, over four seconds under the required 2:18.41.
The semi-finals of the 50m backstroke saw Jacques van Wyk, Clayton Jimmie and Jack Oliver fill out the top three spots in 26.06, 26.82 and 27.09, while the women’s race was contested between Venter, the Seychelles’ Felicity Passon and Erin Gallagher in 29.04, 29.79 and 29.87 respectively. The finals for both events will take place on Friday.
Zane Waddell, Douglas Erasmus and Ryan Coetzee will be battling it out for the 100m freestyle gold in Friday night’s final, as they concluded the semi-finals in 49.55, 50.26 and 50.74, while Dune Coetzee, Marli Jacobs and Caitlin Kat (pictured above) will be looking for fast times in the 200m butterfly final, having finished the semi-finals in 2:16.27, 2:19.59 and 2:21.27, respectively.
The 200m individual medley semi-final was dominated by Ayrton Sweeney in 2:01.69, followed by Neil Fair in 2:03.14 and Luan Grobbelaar in 2:07.59, with the final being held on Friday.
Boland-based Paralympian Hendri Herbst won the gold in the 50m freestyle (S1-13) in a fast 27.50, while the first place in the S14-15 category went to Pierre Dellieu in a Deaf Olympics Qualification time of 24.51. Dellieu also grabbed the 50m breaststroke gold in 31.15.
On the women’s side, Christelle Kriel, who posted a World Para Swimming Championships qualification time in the 100m butterfly earlier in the week, claimed her third and fourth gold medal of the competition in the 50m freestyle (S14-15) in 31.55 and the 50m breaststroke in 43.22, with the S1-13 freestyle gold going to Shannon Martins in 34.73 and the breaststroke title to Cornelle Leach in 44.00.
Friday’s heats will start at 10am and the finals at 6pm.
The staging of this event has been made possible through the support provided by Swimming SA partners, Sport and Recreation South Africa, SASCOC, National Lotteries Commission, Arena and Rand Water.
Pictures courtesy of Anesh Debiky
Qualifying Times after Thursday’s action
17th FINA World Championships (four qualifying times so far):
Cameron van der Burgh – 100m breaststroke – 59.73
Chad le Clos – 200m freestyle – 1:46.84, 200m butterfly – 1:55.00
Myles Brown – 200m freestyle – 1:47.55
6th FINA Junior World Swimming Championships (26 qualifying times so far):
Dune Coetzee – 100m butterfly – 1:01.04, 200m freestyle – 2:03.90
Kate Beavon – 200m freestyle – 2:03.13
Jarryd Baxter – 400m freestyle – 3:51.85, 200m freestyle – 1:50.45
Chad Michau – 800m freestyle – 8:22.99
Timothy Sates – 200m freestyle (SF) – 1:52.94
Rebecca Meder – 200m individual medley – 2:16.24, 1500m freestyle – 16.49.77, 200m freestyle – 2:02.94
Jenna Pearse – 200m freestyle (SF) – 2:05.89
Abi Meder – 1500m freestyle – 17:08.15
Gabi Grobler – 200m individual medley – 2:19.83, 200m freestyle (SF) – 2:05.64
Christina Mundell – 200m individual medley (SF) – 2:20.51, 100m breaststroke (SF) – 1:11.56
Michael Houlie – 100m breaststroke – 1:03.20
Daniel Swanepoel – 100m breaststroke -1:03.07
Bryce Skea– 100m breaststroke -1:03.07
Duncan Rudolph– 100m breaststroke (SF) -1:03.36
Bailey Musgrave– 100m breaststroke (SF) -1:03.56
Kaylene Corbett – 100m breaststroke – 1:09.46
Hanim Abrahams – 100m breaststroke – 1:11.18
Mariella Venter – 100m backstroke – 1:01.53, 200m backstroke (SF) – 2:13.52
Inge Weidemann – 50m freestyle – 26.26
Deaf Olympics Qualifiers (seven qualifying times so far):
Cornelle Loubser – 50 & 100m butterfly
Mark Roach – 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle
Pierre Dellieu – 50m freestyle
Credence Pattinson – 400m freestyle, 50 and 100m backstroke
World Para Swimming Qualifiers (seven qualifying times so far):
David Klopper S2 – 100m backstroke
Christian Sudie S7, SB7, SM7 – 50m butterfly
Franco Smit S12 – 50m freestyle and 100m backstroke
Alani Ferreira S13 – 400m freestyle & 100m breaststroke
Christelle Kriel S14 – 100m butterfly
