T&T’s George Bovell swam to his third gold medal in his sixth men’s 50-metre freestyle final, making it his fifth in 12 finals, strengthening his claim for the US$100,000 winners prize, on the final night of eighth leg of the FINA/Arena Swimming Short Course World Cup. This was at the National Aquatic Centre, Beijing, China, yesterday.
A silver medallist in the 100-metre individual medley on Thursday night, the 29-year-old Bovell, a four-time Olympian, went one better in the 50m freestyle splash when he raced home in 20.98 seconds from lane four, his fourth straight sub-21 clocking to take gold and the US$1,500 winners prize to up his World Cup earnings to US$14,500.
His main rival, USA’s 2000 Olympic champion, Anthony Ervin and winner of the three other 50m freestyle finals, got silver from lane three in 21.19 while Australian Cameron Mc Evoy took bronze in 21.46 from lane five.
Speaking after his win, the T&T swimmer said, “I fought back tonight (yesterday) with another sub-21 effort to win the 50m free. The American Anthony Ervin wasn’t able to match my speed as I answered his challenge from Berlin.
The score of the rivalry now stands at 3-3 with two stops to go. “It wasn’t quite as fast as I had been in Stockholm as there were a few minor errors but anytime I can swim below 21, I will take it and be thankful. It’s not easy, but my consistency is paying off here”, said Bovell III.
The 2004 Athens Greece bronze medallist now has 12 medals (five gold, seven silver). He also won gold in the 50m freestyle in Sweden (20.82), a new national record and Moscow (20.90) in back-to-back meets while his other sub-21 clocking came in Berlin last month, 20.97, in a silver swim.
His time of 20.82 also puts him as the second fastest swimmer in the 50m freestyle behind 2008 Olympic champion, Brazilian Cesar Cielo. The other finishers in the gold medal splash were Finland’s Ari-Pekka Liukkonen (21.63), Aussie duo Kyle Richardson (21.73) and Tomasso D’Orgogna (21.80), and Chinese swimmers, Zhiwu Lu (22.00) and Yang Shi (22.16).
Earlier on in the morning heats, the USA-based top T&T swimmer and seventh placed finisher in the men’s 50m freestyle final at the London Olympic Games, won the fifth and final heat 21.55 ahead of Mc Evoy (21.57), D’Orgogna (21.71), Chinese Taipei’s Kuo-Chi Chang (22.43), China’s Tengfei Shi (22.55), Russian, Viacheslav Prudnikov (22.92) and home town duo, Zhaochen Liu (23.09) and Enjian Zhang (23.33).
Bovell III’s time was also the top qualifier for the finals ahead of Mc Evoy while D’Orgogna has the fourth fastest time. Ervin won heat three in 21.68 for the third best time while Richardson was second in the heat in 21.80 and fifth best overall, and Shi, third in 22.22 for the eight and final top qualifying time. Liukkonen (21.83) and Lu (22.10) were the top two swimmers from heat three.
Prior to the meet in China, Bovell had 92 points to trail To (110) while Japan’s Daiya Seto was next with 81 and with his gold and silver swim, the T&T swimmer was expected to close the gap at the top even more with two more legs to come in Tokyo, Japan, on Tuesday and Wednesday followed by Singapore on Saturday and Sunday, after which the top ranked swimmer will get US$100,000, second US$50,000 and third, US$30,000.
By Nigel Simon
Source: www.guardian.co.tt