To to spearhead team for Turkey

Swimming Australia
Published: Sep 17, 2012 12:14:21 AM Updated: Oct 17, 2012 12:10:19 PM

London Olympian Tommaso D’Orsogna and EnergyAustralia Short Course Championships king Kenneth To will help lead the Australian team at the 2012 World Short Course Championships in Turkey in December.

The Australian team – announced tonight following the final session of competition at the EnergyAustralia Short Course Championships in Perth – also features short course specialists Grace Loh, Rachel Goh and To, who won three national titles, capped off his impressive meet by breaking his Australian record in the 100m individual medley tonight.

To saved his best for last, breaking his short course record while adding the 100m IM to his 100m butterfly and 200m individual medley crowns from earlier in the week.

The seven-time national short course titleholder asserted his dominance early in the 100m IM race, boasting a body-length lead by the half way mark and finishing in 51.64 – 0.3 seconds faster than his own record set at the 2011 Australian Short Course Championships.

A gutsy comeback from West Australian Tommaso D’Orsogna saw the Olympic bronze medallist register the fastest freestyle leg of the race. However, it was not enough to close the gap set by To. South Australian Sam Beinke rounded out the medals in 54.00.

The Junior Pan Pacific Championship distance kings Jordan Harrison, Matt Levings and Mack Horton didn’t disappoint in the men’s 1500m freestyle final, putting on a tantalizing 60-lap tease for the enthusiastic crowd.

Junior Pan Pacific gold medallist Horton led the Miami duo of Harrison and Levings to the one kilometre mark, with only one-tenth of a second separating the three boys.

The first breakaway attempt came from Harrison at the 1200m mark with the Junior Pan Pacs silver medallist’s challenge going unanswered.

Harrison’s superior endurance and carefully paced swim saw him maintain a body length lead to finish in 14.43.26, over 20 seconds quicker than the qualifying time for the 2012 World Short Course Championships.

Horton (14:47.72) and Levings (14:47.01) were left to a fight for silver and despite recording a massive personal best, Horton had to surrender the silver to Levings.

The depth of the field was demonstrated with all three swimmers finishing under the 2012 World Short Course qualifying time.

In other events…

Men’s 50m backstroke MC

London Paralympian Grant Patterson has wrapped up a stellar national short course meet by claiming the 50m backstroke multi-class event.

The win made it three titles for Patterson, adding the backstroke to his world record swims in the 50m freestyle and the 100m breaststroke.

Paralympic gold medallist Patrick Donachie took silver in 32.33 while 36-year-old New South Welshman Troy Puttergill (32.44) claimed the bronze.

Men’s 200m backstroke

Beijing Olympian Ashley Delaney and recently crowned 400m IM champion Travis Mahoney have swum qualifying times for the World Short Course Championships in the men’s 200m backstroke final.

Delaney made his intentions clear early when he pushed out to a body-length lead by the halfway point before finishing in a time of 1:51.75 – 0.4 seconds inside the required mark.

Mahoney came back at the two-time event champion in the final lap, finishing in 1:51.94 to claim silver, while defending titleholder Ben Edmonds (1:52.21) picked up the bronze medal.

“I’m pretty happy with that,” Delaney said. “I was really keen to make that Australian team [for the World Short Course Championships], it was just a shame I left it to the last night to make it.

“I’ve been working on my strength and speed and I gave it everything I’ve got in that last 50 metres, so I’m really happy with that.”

Women’s 100m butterfly

Perth local Brianna Throssell has claimed her maiden Australian short course title, winning the women’s 100m butterfly in a time of 58.46.

Throssell, a four-time silver medallist at this year’s Junior Pan Pacific Championships, was amongst a top four that swapped places throughout the race, with no more than 0.4 seconds separating them at any one stage.

The West Australian was forced to contend with the likes of London Olympic gold medallist Brittany Elmslie and recent three-time Victorian Age Short Course title-holder Jemma Schlicht, who both held the lead throughout the race, while three-time Oceania Championship gold medallist Madeline Groves ensured she was never out of contention for a podium finish.

While never far from first place, Throssell left it until the final lap to make her move, charging past Schicht (58.66), who claimed silver, and Elmslie (58.81) and Schlicht (58.81), who shared bronze.

Men’s 200m butterfly

Grant Irvine has qualified for his first senior Australian swim team after taking out the men’s 200m butterfly.

Swimming out of lane two, Irvine made his move in the second lap, taking a lead he wouldn’t surrender from eventual silver medallist Chris Wright (1:55.37).

He led the field home in a time of 1:53.52 – 0.26 seconds within the World Short Course qualifying time.

Victorian Andrew Cameron was awarded the bronze with his time of 1:56.30.

Women’s 50m backstroke MC

In a versatile display, Paralympian Amanda Fowler backed up last night’s 100m breaststroke multi-class title to overcome 2008 title holder Teneale Houghton in a time of 33.63.

Houghton (32.65) added a final silver medal to her collection, ending her short course campaign with an impressive haul of two gold medals, two silver and one bronze.

Twenty-year-old Hellen Haseloff collected her third bronze for the meet in 37.80.

Women’s 50m backstroke

Junior World Championship gold medallist Grace Loh (27.03) confirmed her status as Australian short course backstroke queen, eclipsing defending champion Rachel Goh (27.23) and equalling her personal best time to take the crown in the women’s 50m backstroke.

The Victorian pair went stroke for stroke throughout the race with a glide to the wall the only thing separating hysteria from heartbreak.

West Australian Holly Barratt was hot on the heels of the ‘oh’ duo, finishing in 27.55 to claim bronze.

Women’s 50m freestyle

Australian record holder Marieke Guehrer has taken out the 50m freestyle final, edging out the field in 24.25.

The newly re-crowned national 100m freestyle short course champion provided an unlikely charge from lane six, finishing ahead of race favourite and World Championship representative Olivia Halicek (24.57).

Olympic gold medallist Brittany Elmslie (25.12) was pipped at the post and pushed out of the medals by freestyle specialist Alexandra Purcell (24.61), who surged into the bronze medal position.

Men’s 100m freestyle

After narrowly missing the Australian Olympic Team in March this year, World Championship gold medallist Matthew Abood (47.33) was back to his best in taking his third title in the men’s 100m freestyle since 2009.

Despite the Olympic disappointment, the Commonwealth and Australian record holder for this event, trained through until this meet with the hard work forcing London Olympian and Tommaso D’Orsogna (47.35) into second place by just 0.02 of a second to take the title.

World Cup Short Course gold medallist Kyle Richardson took home the bronze in a time of 47.61 with Olympian Cam McEvoy touching just 0.02 seconds outside of the medals in 47.63.

Women’s 200m breaststroke

Dual Olympian Sally Foster (2:24.37) stamped her authority on the women’s 200m breaststroke, hitting the wall in 2:21.75 and taking just over two seconds off her seed time to win gold. In doing so she qualified for selection onto the World Short Course Championships team.

Swimming in front of her home crowd, Foster went out fast and proved too strong to for the rest of the field, taking a body length lead after the first 100m and extending it all the way to the wall.

Victorians Jessica Hansen (2:25.98) and Jenna Strauch (2:26.27) tried to keep up with the pace but had to settle for second and third place respectively.

Men’s 50m breaststroke

Commonwealth and Australian record holder Christian Sprenger cruised through the final of the men’s 50m breaststroke to successfully defend his Australian Short Course title in 26.96, just 0.42 off his 2009 Australian record time of 26.54.

The dual-Olympian was quick off the blocks and was superior underwater to maintain his lead to the finish.

Recent 100m breaststroke bronze medallist Nikolas Pregelj went one better tonight, stealing the silver medal in 27.46 from South Australian swimmer Joshua Palmer, who claimed bronze in 27.77.

Women’s 200m freestyle

Dual Olympian Angie Bainbridge was taking no chances in the final of the women’s 200m freestyle.

The tall 22-year-old used her long limbs to pull away from the field to lead by a body length with 50m remaining before stopping the clock at 1:55.16 to gain selection onto the Australian team.

Bainbridge’s London Olympic teammate Blair Evans and Victorian Jessica Morrison fought it out for the minor medals with Morrison digging deep at the final turn to take the silver in 1:56.93 from Evans in 1:57.10.

Men’s 100m butterfly MC

Paralympian Jeremy Tidy has added another gold to his medal collection from this week with a win in the men’s 100m multi-class butterfly final.

The Victorian edged out 17-year-old Jesse Aungles (1:08.54) and 18-year-old Cameron Schefman (1:10.36) to claim the title.

Women’s 100m butterfly MC

Madeleine Scott has claimed her third national short course title, adding the 100m butterfly multi-class event to her 50m butterfly and 50m breaststroke.

Scott, who has also received the 100m breaststroke silver medal, beat Amanda Fowler (1:14.78) and Hellen Haseloff (1:18.34) to the wall in a time of 1:12.25.

Congratulations to all of the swimmers that have successfully qualified for the 2012 Australia Short Course Team.

2012 Australian Swim Team FINA World Short Course Championships

Angie Bainbridge (Hunter, NSW)

Ashley Delaney (Nunawading, VIC)

Tommaso D'Orsogna (West Coast, WA)

Sally Foster (Central Aquatic, WA)

Ellen Fullerton (Chandler, QLD)

Rachel Goh (Nunawading, VIC)

Marieke Guehrer (Melbourne Vicentre, VIC)

Jordan Harrison (Miami, QLD)

Robert Hurley (SOPAC, NSW)

Grant Irvine (St Peters Western, QLD)