Double gold joy for American men, Chinese women
Caeleb Dressel won the blue riband men's 100m freestyle as the United States celebrated two gold medals in the Tokyo pool on Thursday while China's women responded with two golds, and a world record, of their own in another thrilling day of swimming.
Alongside Dressel's triumph in the marquee event, fellow American Bobby Finke clinched the 800m freestyle with an impressive late surge. Dressel also equalled the Olympic record in the men's 100 metre butterfly heats on Thursday.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. China gained their first gold in the Tokyo pool with Zhang Yufei winning the women's 200m butterfly and then she returned to the pool to help her team upset the favoured Australians to win the 4x200m freestyle relay, setting a world record along the way.
China's biggest gold medal hope Zhang delivered in style -- taking control from the outset as she set an Olympic record of 2:03.86 to improve on her silver from the 100m butterfly.
The team of Zhang Yufei, who broke the Olympic record to win the 200m butterfly gold an hour earlier, Yang Junxuan, Tang Muhan and Li Bingjie took an early lead and fought hard to hold it, with Li fighting off a surging Katie Ledecky to keep ahead of the United States and clock a winning time of 7:40.33.
The United States clocked 7:40.73 to win silver ahead of hot favourites Australia in 7:41.29. All three teams finished under the previous world mark of 7:41.50 which the Australians set in 2019.
Australia's Zac Stubblety-Cook took gold in the men's 200m breaststroke, also thanks to an incredible late surge to the finish. The gold was the first in men's breaststroke for Australia since Ian O'Brien in Tokyo in 1964, also in the 200m.
World champion Dressel powered to victory in an Olympic record 47.02, finishing six hundredths of a second ahead of Rio winner Kyle Chalmers of Australia, with Russian Kliment Kolesnikov taking bronze. It was Dressel's fourth Olympic gold but his first in an individual event having picked up two relay medals in Rio and the 4x100m freestyle relay in Tokyo.
In the 800 free, Finke pulled off a surprise win ahead of Italian world champion Gregorio Paltrinieri, who led all the way until the 750m turn when German Florian Wellbrock moved in front for the last length.
But Finke then made his late move and powered home in a time of 7:41.87. Wellbrock faded but Paltrinieri did not, the Italian, who had been a doubt for the Games due to illness, touching 0.24 seconds behind Finke to take the silver.
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