Cate Campbell’s focus turns to Olympic champion Penny Oleksiak in 100m freestyle

“WE do have an Olympic champion in the race and someone who wished they could have been an Olympic champion.” Cate Campbell is as efficient with her words as she is in the water.

“WE do have an Olympic champion in the race and someone who wished they could have been an Olympic champion.”

Cate Campbell is as efficient with her words as she is in the water.

As outstanding as she has been at these Commowealth Games - setting world records and winning gold medals - Campbell knows her program meet will be judged by her performance in the 100m freestyle where she meets Rio Olympic champion, Canada’s Penny Oleksiak.

As a 16-year-old sprite competing in her first senior international meet, Oleksiak shocked the world when she won the 100m freestyle in Rio in a dead-heat with American Simone Manuel.

It was a race Campbell had been expected to win but faded to finish sixth in what she brutally termed “possibly the greatest choke in Olympic history”.

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Cate Campbell will turn her attention to the 100m freestyle.

Her clash against Oleksiak then, is as much a mental battle as a physical one.

Neither swimmer is approaching the race as a rematch.

But both are smart enough to know that will be the narrative regardless of their own framework.

“I really need to focus on what I need to do,” Campbell said of heading into her first major international 100m since her post-Olympic sabbatical.

“We do have an Olympic champion in the race and someone who wished they could have been an Olympic champion.

“But that’s what sport is all about.

“That’s what people are going to want to come and watch.

Campbell is out for redemption after her Rio flop in the event. Picture. Brett Costello

“No one would come and watch if it was an easy win, people don’t want to see that, we want to see people fight and dig in deep and close races.

“And that’s exactly what Commonwealth Games is going to offer everyone.

“I wouldn’t want to swim if Penny wasn’t in that race.”

The young Canadian headed into these Games with a heavy heart, having announced the death of her grandmother on Wednesday.

She too has had her battles since Rio, combating injury and missing the podium at the world championships in Hungary last year.

But she also knows the 100m, which starts on Sunday with heats and semi-finals before Sunday night’s decider, will be seen as a rematch.

Rio gold medalist Penny Oleksiak (R) will be Campbell’s main foe on the Gold Coast

“I think there’s going to be a lot of hype around it for sure,” Oleksiak said.

“People want to see that battle, I guess.

“But Cate’s a very, very nice person and I’m just really excited to go into the race to hopefully do what I can for Canada.

“And I know I have them supporting me, I have even people from Australia supporting me.

“So at the end of the day, I can’t complain about what result comes out of it.”

On paper, Campbell is the overwhelming favourite.

Her 52.37sec effort to win the Games trials last month is the fastest time in the world this year by more than half a second, while Oleksiak’s best over the past 15 months was a 52.94 at the world championships last year.

But that was the case in Rio too.

This gold medal will represent so much more than a race win.

Campbell has been in strong form following her swimming sabbatical.

TALE OF THE TAPE

Cate Campbell

Country: Australia

Age: 25

Height: 186cm

100m PB: 52.06sec

100m Honours: World championships gold 2013, bronze 2015; Commonwealth Games gold 2014; Pan Pacific gold 2014

Penny Oleksiak

Country: Canada

Age: 17

Height: 186cm

100m PB: 52.70sec

100m Honours: Olympic Games gold 2016

Originally published as Cate Campbell’s focus turns to Olympic champion Penny Oleksiak in 100m freestyle