Moment becomes all too much for O’Callaghan after beating 200 metres freestyle world record, only for Titmus to better that
Mollie O’Callaghan had just broken the world record, but lost. In front of the camera, bravely speaking about how nervous she had been. Behind the curtain, heartbroken, writes TODD BALYM.
Behind the curtains of the Olympic swim trials, Mollie O’Callaghan broke down in tears.
She’d kept a brave face on pool deck and only just contained her emotions during poolside television and media interviews, but the moment she barely finished her last sentence the emotion spilt over.
Waiting with a long consoling hug metres away was coach Dean Boxall.
O’Callaghan had just swum the fastest 200m freestyle race of her life. She’d lowered her previous world record of 1:52.85 by almost half a second to touch in 1:52.48.
The only problem was, teammate Ariarne Titmus was faster in 1:52.23.
Boxall had greeted both women with “Yeah girls, yeah girls, Yes” as they walked into the media area. But only one was happy.
The world champion was defeated and deflated.
Titmus had shocked the world, even overhauled O’Callaghan in the final 15m in a defining move that stamps her as the Paris gold medal favourite.
Let the mind games begin.
The warning signs were writ large on O’Callaghan’s face that the ‘Terminator’ was winning the mental battle.
But the Olympic trials is just one battle, the real war is to be waged in Paris for Olympic gold.
The younger O’Callaghan has never raced an individual event at an Olympics where the pressure is amplified and even the toughest crumbled. Titmus, as we know, is a stone-cold killer and the double defending champion in the 200m and 400m freestyle.
The 20-year-old O’Callaghan admitted she could barely sleep the night before the trials. Those nerves will only be amplified in Paris.
She felt the pressure coming into this meet, even if Titmus dominated the headlines.
If anything, O’Callaghan losing the world record will be a blessing as she is relieved of the suffocating pressure of a world record holder going into the Olympics.
“I think anything and everything motivates me,” O’Callaghan said.
“I don’t think one swim really defines me.
“I think I will take anything at this point (she said of her swim), I am still learning. I’m only young and I’m not as experienced as the other girls so I will take anything at this point.
“To be honest I think I was always overlooked. I wasn’t really out there, which is ideal. I like to just fly under the radar.
“I think I have to look at the positive side and really take the pressure off me because heading into this I was not in a good place.”
Those last six words are telling.
It’s a giant warning sign to coach Boxall that perhaps his young world champion has some mental challenges turning last year’s Fukuoka world titles domination into an Olympic repeat.
“Yeah, I didn’t really sleep last night but,” she explained, before holding back tears and unable to finish her sentence.
What we learnt from the trials is that Titmus lives for the big moments.
We also learnt that if O’Callaghan can endure a sleepless night and still produce a world record, only to be beaten by one of the sport’s greats, if she nails her preparation in Paris there is no doubt she can strike back.
And as we now know, Mollie really hates second place.
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