Aussie swimmers brought back to Earth after golden opening night as records tumble

AFTER a double gold medal haul on the opening night, the Aussies might have walked away from the pool slightly deflated after finding the going tougher on day two.

Emily Seebohm qualified for the 100m backstroke final but will need to improve to challenge for a medal. Picture: Alex Coppel.

AFTER a double gold medal haul on the opening night Australia would walk away from the pool slightly deflated as the men’s relay was their only medal on a night where they had opportunities but just could not get the job done.

Three world records fell in three finals but unfortunately for Australians, there wasn’t a medal to pocket.

USA superstar Katie Ledecky smashed her own world mark by almost two seconds to win the 400m freestyle in 3:56.46.

It was an astonishing swim by Ledecky who looks a class above the rest in every way as she powered to an easy win that left not only the field, but the imaginary world record line in her wake.

United States superfish Katie Ledecky slices through the water. Picture: AP

Great Britains Jazz Carling was second in 4:01.23, ahead of USA’s Leah Smith in 4:01.92.

Australia’s Tamsin Cook finished in sixth place in 4:05.30 ahead of teammate Jess Ashwood who was seventh in 4:05.68.

Australia’s Emma McKeon felt the full swing of Olympic emotions, going from relay gold medallist on day one to devastated beaten butterflyer in the 100m final on day when she could only managed seventh with a time of 57.05s.

It was a heartbreaking result for McKeon who had entered the final as the second fastest qualifier, but emerged slowly off the blocks and quite simply never looked on par with the women fighting for the medals.

Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom was totally unstoppable from start to finish, breaking her own world record on her way to winning gold in 55.48 seconds.

“The feeling is totally crazy. I didn’t realise it was a world record,” Sjostrom said.

“I knew I was the big favourite. I was under pressure, so I tried to focus on no disasters.

“Before the start I said to myself it’s just a pool. It’s nothing. I know what to do. I was not so nervous, I was in a good mood today. I knew the hundred metres butterfly was my big chance.”

Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom was overjoyed, while Aussie Emma McKeon wanted her race again. Picture: Getty Images

Canada’s Penny Oleksiak, incredibly born just two months before the Sydney 2000 Olympics, claimed the silver medal in 56.46s while US veteran Dana Vollmer claimed bronze in 56.63s.

Not to be outdone, Great Britain’s Adam Peaty obliterated his own 100m breaststroke mark to win in 57.13s.

South African defending champ Cameron van der Burgh was second in 58.69s while USA’s Cody Miller collected the bronze in 58.87s.

It was also a tough night for two world champions — Emily Seebohm and Mitch Larkin — who qualified for their 100m backstroke finals but will need to improve significantly to take the gold medals tomorrow.

Larkin qualified in third place for the 100m backstroke final in 52.70s as USA pair Ryan Murphy (52.49s) and David Plummer (52.50s) set the pace.

It was by no means the fastest swim by Larkin, but tomorrow he has the chance to pull out one big race to claim the gold medal

Seebohm however needs to make big moves. She was seventh into her final in 59.32s and will swim out of lane one as USA’s Kathleen Baker (58.84s) was fastest.

All eyes will be on Aussie Mitch Larkin in the 100m backstroke final. Picture. Phil Hillyard

Brisbane’s Madison Wilson also booked a spot in the final with a 59.03s semi-final win to be fourth fastest into the main event.

Gold Coaster Tom Fraser-Holmes has suffered the heartbreak of missing an Olympic final by just 0.01s in the 200m freestyle.

Fraser-Holmes produced a solid 1:46.24 semi-final swim in the fastest heat of the semis, but it was not quite enough as Britain’s reigning world champ James Guy claimed the eighth and final spot in 1:46.23.

China’s Sun Yang looms as the man to beat, however, his semi time was well clear of anyone else as he touched in 1:44.63.

Sunshine Coast’s Taylor McKeown has just missed qualifying for the women’s 100m breaststroke final after she placed fifth in her semi-final with a time of 1:07.12.

The time was only good enough to leave McKeown ranked 11th as USA’s Lilly King qualified fastest in 1:05.70.

Russia’s reigning world champion, convicted drug cheat Yulia Efimova, qualified second fastest in 1:05.72 and was booed by the crowd when she won her semi-final.

Originally published as Aussie swimmers brought back to Earth after golden opening night as records tumble