WORLD CHAMPION BACKSTROKING DUO CLAIM FIRST SHORT COURSE GOLDS

  

Swimming Australia, November 3, 2016: Brisbane’s world champion backstrokers Mitch Larkin and Emily Seebohm have wasted no time making their mark on the Hancock Prospecting Australian Short Course Swimming Championships which kicked off at the Brisbane Aquatic Centre, Chandler today.

The pair only flew in from their successes at recent Asian World Cup meets two days ago but have already landed two gold medal swims between them from the opening session.

Larkin won the 50 metres backstroke Timed Final in 23.54 from Bond’s Olympic freestyler Cam McEvoy (24.05) and Warringah’s Bobby Hurley (24.31), who actually kicked his way through the two laps after suffering an infection in his neck.

While in the 50m butterfly it was notable backstroker Seebohm who snatched the gold in 26.13 in a blanket finish from Christina Licciardi from the NSW 26.21 and Holly Barratt from WA in 26.23.

Seebohm will be hoping to take her total of Australian Short Course titles to nine tonight when she leads the qualifiers into the 200m backstroke final.

She will also line up in the 50 and 100m backstroke events and 100m individual medley.

Larkin was able to hold off World Cup rival Hurley who because of the infection in his neck, chose not use his arm, remarkably forcing him to kick through the two 25s.

Because of the Timed Final format over the condensed three-day program introduced by Swimming Australia, it allowed McEvoy, himself a former Age Group backstroke champion, to swim from lane zero in the first of three heats and post a time faster than Hurley’s.

Both Larkin and Seebohm are hoping to qualify for the Australian Dolphins team to contest the Fina World Short Course Championships in Windsor in December.

The team, with a maximum of 20, will be named on Sunday night.

 

 

Meanwhile earlier in the day McEvoy qualified third into the final of the 100m freestyle, winning his heat in 47.45.

London Olympian Tommaso D’Orsogna, at 26, the oldest swimmer in the final is the fastest qualifier in 47.32 from McEvoy’s Bond training partner Brayden McCarthy 47.36 after smoking through the first 50m in 22.48.

Rio Olympic champion Kyle Chalmers won his heat in 47.91 to qualify fifth as he chases his first ever National title.

In the women’s 100m freestyle heats, Brisbane Grammar’s Olympic gold medal relay swimmer Brittany Elmslie clocked the fastest time of 53.00 seconds from Denmark’s Mie Nielsen 53.12 from Olympians Maddie Groves (53.31), Madi Wilson (53.39), Acacia’s Carla Buchanan 5.92 and Elmslie’s gold medal winning relay team mate Bronte Campbell next on 53.98.

Finals start from 6pm and the meet runs over the next two days culminating in Swimming Australia’s Gala Dinner at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre on Sunday night.

 

FULL RESULTS