Four swimmers add names to Youth Olympics qualifiers list
JOHANNESBURG – Four more swimmers added their names to the list of qualifiers for this year's Youth Olympic Games at the South Africa Swimming Championships in Port Elizabeth on Tuesday evening.
Commonwealth Games finalist Kaylene Corbett had to fight off a challenge from 16-year-old Christin Mundell in the women's 100m breaststroke hitting the wall first in a time of 1:10.06.
Mundell bagged the silver medal clocking 1:10.72 to add her name to the list of qualifiers for this year’s Youth Olympic Games in Argentina.
Emily Visagie, who also featured in the 200m breaststroke final at the Gold Coast Games had to be content with third place with her time of 1:11.46.
Backstroker Mariella Venter came painstakingly close to her personal best winning the 100m race with a time of 1:01.86 to add her name to the list of qualifiers for the Youth Olympics.
She stopped the clock just 0.15 short of the PB she set at last year’s Junior World Championships in Indianapolis, beating her nearest rival by more than three seconds.
Venter dipped well below the qualifying mark with Hanna Kiely finishing second with 1:04.49.
Uitenhage swimmer Alaric Basson claimed the men’s 100m breaststroke title in the absence of London 2012 Olympic champion Cameron van Burgh.
Basson beat an in-form Michael Houlie, who posted another Youth Olympic qualifying time clocking the exact same time as in Monday’s semi-final touching second in 1:02.57.
Kate Beavon was in fine form in the women’s 200m freestyle touching the wall first in a time of 2:03.27 with Janie Coetzer touching in second place with a time of 2:05.75.
Jarryd Baxter out-touched breaststroke and medley specialist Ayrton Sweeney racing home with a time of 1:49.84.
Sweeney finished in second place with a time of 1:51.37 with Brent Szurdoki rounding off the podium in third place clocking 1:51.79.
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Fifteen-year-old swimmers Olivia Nel and Michael de Villiers occupied the top two steps on the podium finishing first second and second with times of 28.19 and 28.38 respectively.
In the men’s 100m backstroke Jacques van Wyk raced to victory in a time of 55.80 ahead of Martin Binedell in second place clocking 56.42 with Ian Venter taking bronze in 57.55.
Rio Olympian Douglas Erasmus finished ahead of Zambian swimmer Ralph Goveia touching first in 24.31. Alard Basson was the second South African in the race clocking 24.91.
Luan Grobbelaar, who made his debut at the Gold Coast Games pencilled his name for the Youth Olympics posting a 200m individual medley qualifying time of 2:06.66 int he semi-final.
Youth Olympic Games qualifiers:
Men: Michael Houlie (100m breaststroke), Riccardo di Domenico (50m butterfly), Luan Grobbelaar (200m individual medley)
Women: Christin Mundell (100m breaststroke), Mariella Venter (100m backstroke), Kate Beavon (200m freestyle).
IOL Sport