Australian swim trials: Mack Horton to consider retirement after missing world championship selection
Australian Olympic champion Mack Horton could hang up his goggles after missing selection in the Australian team for next month’s world championships.
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Olympic swimming champion Mack Horton is re-evaluating his future after missing selection in the Australian team for next month’s world championships.
Horton has not made a decision yet on whether he plans to keep swimming through to next year’s Paris Olympics or hang up his goggles now having already achieved everything in the sport.
Already a national hero, both for his incredible performances in the pool and his brave stance against doping outside of it, missed out on the Dolphins team for the first time since he made his senior debut in 2014.
He finished third in the 400m freestyle - his signature event that he famously won at the 2016 Rio Olympics - then missed out on the final for the 200m and withdrew from the 800m on the advice of his coach Michael Bohl.
“He just wasn‘t at his best here, obviously. It wasn’t a good meet for him,” Bohl said.
“The 400m wasn‘t disastrous, but it wasn’t great. And the 200m just looked like he was just slowly deteriorating away.
“And I just thought ‘what’s the point of putting him up there over 800m if he’s not swimming like he needs to be swimming, there’s just no point.”
Although he has finished racing for the week, Horton was spotted in the water having a light swim and talking to national head coach Rohan Taylor.
Bohl said he had exchanged messages with Horton and understood the 27-year-old wanted a few days to think things through.
“He‘s just going to gather his thoughts and just work through the next few days and we’ll just talk about what’s next for him,” Bohl said.
“So no decision has been made. He‘s just going to think about it and evaluate going forward what he needs to do, and then we’ll just see what he does from there.”
A multi Olympic, world championship and Commonwealth games medallist during his career, Horton has struggled to replicate his career best times in recent years.
He has still been swimming well but the competition to get on the Australian team in his events is intense. The two men who finished ahead of him in the 400m are Sam Short, who is currently ranked No. 1 in the world, and Elijah Winnington, the reigning world champion.
“He did some good indicators with the work we‘re doing coming in, but he just didn’t look like the Mack we’ve seen in training,” Bohl said.
“He just wasn‘t able to get the best out of himself for whatever reason, it’s difficult, you just never know.
“Sometimes you think all the ducks are lined up in a row but when you watch the swim it‘s, ’geez, where did that come from?’
“Our whole group is very disappointed for him because he‘s such a tremendous bloke and just works really, really hard and prepares professionally, just does everything you ask him to do. You couldn’t have a better person training in the group so it’s disappointing for him.”
AUSSIE WHIZ KIDS PUT SWIMMING WORLD ON NOTICE
The world has been put on notice, Australia’s next wave of super teenage swimmers has taken over.
Led by Mollie O’Callaghan and Sam Short, the Dolphins are assembling a formidable team of crackerjack youngsters for next month’s world championships in Fukuoka, Japan.
Any fears that Australian swimming might be on the slide after the record-breaking feats at the Tokyo Olympics can be put to bed.
There’s still some holes but overall, the current team might be even stronger – thanks to the phenomenal whiz kids overturning the form book at this week’s national trials in Melbourne.
Already the reigning world champion over 100m freestyle, 19-year-old O’Callaghan overhauled Olympic champion Ariarne Titmus to win the 200m freestyle on Thursday, stopping the clock at 1:53.83 – the fastest by anyone in the world this year.
“I am just so over the moon with that time,” O’Callaghan said.
“I‘m just so thankful for (coach) Dean (Boxall) and the team really helping me out preparing for this meeting because there’s a lot of things I’ve been working on and trying to improve on so it’s obviously worked.”
Titmus held on for second to secure herself another individual berth at the worlds after winning the 400m on Tuesday, touching in 1:54.14.
Incredibly, the first six Australians in the A final – which included Lani Pallister, Madi Wilson, Kiah Melverton and Brianna Throssell – and the winner of the B final, Shayna Jack – all went under the individual qualifying time.
The Aussies are already the world record holders for the 4x200m relay but will be at unbackable odds to win the world title because of their unmatched depth.
“Anytime you don‘t win, it doesn’t feel as nice but I knew Mollie would fast because she’s been training unbelievably,” Titmus said.
“I‘m grateful that she’s a teammate. I prefer a teammate of mine or training partner of mine to win instead of me over anybody.
“But fortunately, the 200m freestyle is a relay event, so it‘s actually a good thing that there’s people pushing each other.”
Short, also 19, jumped to the top of the world rankings in the men’s 800m freestyle when he cruised to victory in 7:40.39, less than two seconds outside Grant Hackett’s Australian record.
Also ranked No. 1 in the world in 400m, Short is looming as a big medal in the distance events next month.
“It‘s pretty good…But I know there’s a lot of international swimmers, and the Americans are racing next week,” he said.
“They‘ve got the Olympic champ Bobby Finke so he’ll probably post something great. And those Europeans, they’ll go 7:38, 7;39 on the world stage.
“But I think with someone next to me, because I‘m a racer, definitely gives me a lot of confidence going into worlds.”
Elijah Winnington finished second, well under the strict qualifying time set by Swimming Australia.
Rio Olympic champion in 400m, Mack Horton withdrew from the final, ending his last of making the Australian team.
Bowen Gough fell victim to Swimming Australia’s brutal rules when he won the men’s 200m butterfly final but missed automatic selection.
Alexandria Perkins won the women’s 50m butterfly in 25.92, the 13th best time in the world this season, but Swimming Australia does not select swimmers for the 50m stroke events, unless they are already on the team.
The same applies to Sam Williamson, who won the men’s 50m breaststroke.
Aussie coach reveals ripple effect of Lewis’ epic reaction
Hayley Lewis’ spontaneous reaction to her son Kai Taylor’s incredible victory in the men’s 200m freestyle has given the whole Australian swim team a massive boost ahead of next month’s world championships.
While the video clip of Lewis going ballistic in the stands is already trending on social media, the one-time darling of Australian swimming has had an even bigger ripple effect on the rest of the Dolphins team.
Head coach Rohan Taylor (no relation) – said the breathtaking performance from the Queensland teenager – and the priceless reaction of his famous mother – was just the lift the team needed before they take on the world’s best in Fukuoka, Japan.
“It just gives inspiration to others that are aspiring to do the same thing,” Taylor said. “It opens up the fact that you can break into the team and can achieve things from any lane in the pool.
“The other part is legacy. We talk a lot about the team, about how you‘re part of a rich history and it just so happens that obviously Hayley is one of our really well known (champions) … so to have that connection with mum and son is fantastic.”
A legend of Australian swimming during the 1990s and early 2000s, Lewis may have retired before some of the current Australian stars were even born, but they all know who she is.
As triple Olympic champion Kaylee McKeown put it: “Kai’s got good genes.”
World champion Mollie O’Callaghan, who trains with 19-year-old Kai under Dean Boxall, said Lewis was a constant source of inspiration to all the younger swimmers and their families coming through.
“My mum talks to her. She‘s such a lovely person, so humble,” O’Callaghan said.
“You wouldn‘t even know that she was such an amazing swimmer. I know she would be so excited watching Kai swim because she’s just a lovely person in general.”
O’Callaghan, who is about eight months younger than Kai, said she also went wild when she saw her teammate pull of an unlikely win from the outside lane, emulating his mother’s famous victory at the 1991 world championships.
“Kai and I do middle distance together so he‘s one of my little training buddies. He’s a phenomenal trainer,” O’Callaghan said.
“I could tell he was a little bit nervous, but he just swam phenomenal and I‘m so proud of him. The whole team was proud of him.
“I was watching and screaming for him because after watching him train and watching him put all the hard work, it‘s just amazing to see what he produced.
“And to be on his first (Australian) team, it‘s quite incredible.”
Kai did get a lucky break after he initially missed out on qualifying for the final. He got thrown a lifeline when Kyle Chalmers pulled out, but made the most of his second chance.
And now he’s been given an extra bonus.
Although his winning time in the final – 1:46.25 – was just outside Swimming’s Australia’ strict qualifying standards for world championships selection, head coach Rohan Taylor said he would use his discretionary power to let him swim the individual event and the 4x200m relay in Japan because he had met all the official requirements.
“Yes, of course, absolutely,” Taylor said. “If they‘ve got the FINA A time, we can enter them.”
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