Give Bronte Campbell relay swim over sister Cate, she’s earned it

THE rivalry between Cate and Bronte Campbell is about to hit greater heights, with Bronte set to usurp her big sister for a spot in the 4 x 100m medley relay team just 24 hours after beating Cate to the punch for the 100m freestyle gold.

Bronte Campbell celebrates, as Cate Campbell of Australia looks on, after winning the women’s 100m freestyle final.

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BEATING big sister Cate for an epic 100m freestyle gold seems certain to become a double-whammy with bonus medal joy tonight for Bronte Campbell.

Bronte is also set to usurp Cate for a prized swim in the freestyle anchor leg for Australia’s 4 x 100m medley relay team at the final session in the Commonwealth Games pool on the Gold Coast.

There was too much for fans and even the Campbell sisters themselves to process after Monday night’s two-lap dash to deal with the subplot to one of the upsets of the Games.

Will Bronte Campbell knock her own sister out of the medley relay team?

The medley relay team is always assembled based on Australia’s fastest performer in the four 100m races of the four strokes at the meet ... unless the swim coaches completely throw that formula out the window.

It has happened before.

At the 2004 Athens Olympics, Brooke Hanson swam the race of her life for silver in the women’s 100m breaststroke and relegated the decorated Leisel Jones to bronze by .01 sec.

The coaches rattled sensitivities by still deciding that Jones should swim the final of the medley relay, which delivered gold, although Hanson still received a cherished gold for swimming the medley relay heat.

Bronte Campbell celebrates, as Cate Campbell of Australia looks on, after winning the women’s 100m freestyle final.

Forming this Australian medley relay squad has its own twists.

Cate swam an astonishing 51.00 sec leg to anchor the world record blitz in the 4 x 100m freestyle relay gold medal last Thursday night.

Even adjusting for Cate’s fly start, that time would be faster than Bronte’s super-slick 52.27 to win the individual 100m freestyle.

Cate is the ultimate relay racer, right?

That may be true but Bronte deserves and must be rewarded with the extra relay swim that her great victory warrants.

Silver medalist Cate Campbell (left) hugs her sister and gold medalist Bronte Campbell during the medal ceremony for the women’s 100m freestyle final.

The Australian squad has fallen into a pattern of not announcing their exact relay line-ups until an hour before the 7.30pm sessions start at these Games.

That has even applied when there have been morning swim-offs for places in front of the public who know the answer ahead of time.

The swim-offs were staged in the Games pool after the heats when it became known certain events like the 4 x 200m freestyle relays, for men and women, didn’t have heats.

Give Bronte the relay swim. She’s has earned it and noble Cate would say as much.

Originally published as Give Bronte Campbell relay swim over sister Cate, she’s earned it