Seebohm sets Olympic backstroke record

29 Jul 2012, 10:22 pm   -   Source: AAP

Australia's women set the pace at the Olympic pool, winning gold in the freestyle relay before Emily Seebohm set an Olympic record in a backstroke heat.

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Emily Seebohm has already claimed one gold medal and one Olympic record in London, without even swimming in a final.

The Queensland 20-year-old picked up her gold for swimming in the heats for the ultimately triumphant Australian four of Alicia Coutts, Cate Campbell, Brittany Elmslie and Melanie Schlanger.

The Queensland quartet won Australia's first gold of the 2012 Games in Saturday night's freestyle relay final, and the much-touted men's team led by James Magnussen will be hot favourites to emulate them after qualifying fastest for Sunday night's final.

Sleeping on gold must have worked wonders for Seebohm because she returned to the pool on Sunday morning to smash the Olympic record in a heat of her specialty event, the 100m backstroke.

Seebohm scorched home to win by more than a body-length in 58.23 seconds, more than half a second faster than Kirsty Coventry's winning time in Beijing four years ago.

It was the fastest swim ever in a textile suit and third fastest of all time.

"From my reaction you could probably tell I was pretty shocked," said Seebohm, who is now eyeing the world record.

She was easily the quickest qualifier into Sunday night's semi-finals with US teen star Missy Franklin (59.37) in second and Australian Belinda Hocking (59.61) in third.

Seebohm, who dramatically collapsed at last year's national championships after suffering swine flu, will now have high hopes for an individual medal after winning her first gold in Beijing in Australia's winning medley relay team.

Her heat time keeps the momentum going for Australia's female swimmers after they upset favourites the Netherlands to win the freestyle relay in Olympic record time.

"I think that we've just given them (the men) something to reach for, don't you think?" joked Cate Campbell, stoking the fires for Magnussen and Co.

"There's no better feeling than that," said Melanie Schlanger, the star of the show, who clocked a brilliant final leg of 52.65 to fend off Dutch star Romy Kromowidjojo.

"When everyone can fire on the day, that's what Olympic gold is made of."

Australia's women basketballers also got their Olympic campaign off to a solid start with a 74-58 victory over Great Britain in their opening pool match.

Lauren Jackson, the Olympic team's flag bearer who is playing at her fourth Olympics, made the difference by scoring 18 points, most at crucial times to keep the Opals from paying more dearly for a sluggish start.

At the rowing regatta, day one disappointments Scott Brennan and David Crawshay produced a far better display in their men's double sculls repechage on Sunday to ensure an outside lane in Tuesday's semi-final.

The Hockeyroos had the toughest of all starts, however, going down 1-0 to New Zealand on Sunday morning in a group of death from which they will now do well to survive.

They couldn't catch up after falling behind to a third minute goal from a penalty corner and must now win every remaining match and hope other results go their way to make the semi-finals and play for a medal.

Lauryn Mark made a poor start in the women's skeet shooting, scoring just 17 points from a possible 25 in the opening round, which left her third last in the 17-woman field.

Beach volleyball duo Natalie Cook and Tamsin Hinchley went down narrowly to America's reigning Olympic champions Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh 21-18, 21-19.

Bantamweight boxer Ibrahim Balla scraped through his opening round bout on a countback to give Australia a winning start over Moroccan Aboubakr Lbida.

Olympics 2012

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