Birthday girl Emily leads Dolphins to dominant second day in Santa Clara

 

  

Swimming Australia, June 5 2016: Birthday girl Emily Seebohm has led another impressive charge from Australia’s Dolphins on a dominant day two at the Arena Pro Swim Series in Santa Clara, California, earlier today.

The dual 100 and 200m backstroke world champion, celebrated her 24^th birthday with an all-the-way victory to head-line four victories and one of three Aussie 1-2 finishes with world championship silver medallist Madi Wilson second.

 

Seebohm said before the race she was keen to swim sub 59 seconds and that’s just what she did, clocking 58.92 to Wilson’s 59.87.

 

The David Lush-coached triple Olympian told American commentator, former Olympic gold medallist Rowdy Gaines after the race that it “wasn’t as easy as it looked.”

 

“I was happy with the time – under 59 seconds is pretty good at this stage of my preparation for Rio and a nice way to celebrate my birthday but it wasn’t easy,” Seebohm said.

 

Emma McKeon, who won the 200m freestyle and finished second in the 100m butterfly on day one led an Aussie quinella ahead of London Olympic relay golden girl Brittany Elmslie against an all-star US field including Natalie Coughlin and Simone Manuel in the 50m freestyle.

 

McKeon clocked 24.85, just a fingernail outside her personal best of 24.82 with Elmslie touching in 24.90, an eye-catching personal best for her and another display by Australia’s crop of sprinters, with the Campbell sisters Cate and Bronte at home in Brisbane.

 

She said the opportunity to “race the likes of the Campbell sisters in Australia helps bring out the best in you – I’m really happy with that swim,” she said.

 

But Brisbane girls Jess Ashwood and Bronte Barratt couldn’t let the sprinters and backstroke girls steal the limelight, scoring their own 1-2 finish in the 400m freestyle – with world championships bronze medallist Jess Ashwood only just outside her time from Kazan last year with Barratt pushing her teammate all the way.

 

Ashwood’s  2:01.45 led Barratt 2:01.96 through the first 200m before Ashwood stepped up to bring it home in the second 200m, clocking 2:02.46 for the second 200m for a time of 4:03.91, suggesting she is certainly on track for Rio.

 

Barratt, who will contest the 200m in Rio, also clocked an impressive 4:06.75 for second, as she prepares for her Olympic swansong at her third Games in the 200m freestyle.

 

“I’m actually very surprised with that swim, I always set myself high expectations and I was looking to go 4:04 so to break that is very pleasing,” said Ashwood.

 

Australia’s fourth win was actually in the first event with Australian champion Maddie Groves an impressive winner in the women’s 200m butterfly in 2:07.77 after her 2:08.88 heat swim – two swims that impressed heat coach Jacco Verhaeren with yesterday’s 400IM winner, Keryn McMaster snatching fourth place on the wall in 2:15.24.

 

“My goal before the race was to get out; get out after it and show some ticker…” Groves told Rowdy Gaines, who spoke glowingly of Australia’s improved depth across the board.

 

In other notable swims:

 

World champion Mitch Larkin finished second to US star Ryan Murphy in a much talked about showdown with Murphy touching in 52.76 to Larkin’s 53.32. But the big news came out of the Arena Pro Meet in Indianapolis with American David Plummer clocking a 2016 world best 100m backstroke time of 52.40, with the US Trials just three weeks away.

 

“Ryan Murphy is a very good swimmer and I thought Mitch, at this stage of his preparation, executed his race really well,” said head coach Jacco Verhaeren.

 

“Of course you always want to win and improve but you have to remember where you are at and sometimes (your preparation) doesn’t always allow you to do that but his speed will come later. I thought he raced very well and did an excellent job.”

 

James Magnussen continued to show improvement with his third place to London 100m freestyle nemesis Nathan Adrian in the 50m freestyle final; Adrian winning in 21.68 from 35-year-old Sydney 2000 gold medallist Anthony Ervin (21.98), Magnussen (22.19) and fellow Australians Andrew Abood (22.36) 5^th and Kyle Chalmers (22.53) 6^th after his third in the 200m freestyle yesterday.

 

Australian 100m breaststroke champion and yesterday’s 100m second place-getter Georgia Bohl finished in a dead-heat for second in today’s 200m breaststroke with American Emma Schanz (2:31.30) behind Canadian Martha McCabe (2:27.39).

 

While Chandler training partners David McKeon and Jack McLoughlin dead-heated for fourth in the 400m freestyle in 3:51.65 and Grant Irvine was seventh in the 200m butterfly in 2:00.07.

 

Verhaeren said he could not be happier with the performances and the effort from his swimmers.

 

“They are all doing a great job and you have to remember some swimmers can swim better ‘in season’ than others and that’s important to take in to consideration,” said Verhaeren.

 

“But there are some very strong fields here in Santa Clara as the US guys prepare for their Trials and I can tell you that the Americans are very happy to have the Australians here and swimming so well.”

The meet concludes tomorrow (10am AEST) with the LIVE FINALS on the USA Swimming webcast