Australian swimmer Mollie O'Callaghan claimed an emotional victory in the women's 200m freestyle at the world championships in Singapore, marking her comeback after a post-Olympic break and injury. She won gold with a time of one minute 53.48 seconds, while teammate Jamie Perkins finished seventh in 1:56.55.
O'Callaghan expressed gratitude for the support from her coach Dean Boxall and the team, stating: 'Heading into this week has been a whirlwind. Having a big long break after the Olympics was well needed and then coming back from injury myself, I am so thankful to have an amazing coach to guide me through this difficult time.'
Australia's fortunes fluctuated on Wednesday night. Kyle Chalmers laid down an ominous marker for the men's 100m freestyle final, clocking 47.36 seconds in his semi-final, faster than his 2016 Olympic gold medal swim. Rookie Harrison Turner won bronze in the men's 200m butterfly, Australia's first medal in the event at a world championships, with an Australian record of 1:54.17.
However, gold medal hopeful Sam Short was forced to withdraw from the men's 800m freestyle final due to gastro illness, suspected food poisoning from lunch at the team hotel. Swimming Australia said the source had yet to be established. Short's Olympics last year were also upset by illness and injury.
In other events, the Australian mixed 4x100m medley team finished fifth, while French star Leon Marchand broke the men's 200m medley world record with a time of 1:52.69 in a semi-final. At the diving world titles held concurrently in Singapore, Australian duo Cassiel Rousseau and Maddison Keeney won silver in the mixed 3m springboard synchro.
