Ariarne Titmus has gained another level of respect for the legendary Michael Phelps as a brutal swimming schedule takes its toll.
Australia’s new swimming sensation, Titmus finished second in her 800m freestyle heat tonight with a time of 8:18.99 to qualify for Saturday’s final against Katie Ledecky.
The Tokyo double gold medallist also claimed bronze in the 4x200m freestyle relay today and admitted a heavy schedule was starting to take a toll.
“I knew I wanted to be under the 8:20 mark to be safe,” Titmus said.
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“It’s a big day today. I only had one and a half hours in my hotel room. I’m absolutely buggered. I will swim down quickly and get home.
“This is probably my toughest back-up and… a really deep field. I knew I had to be tough and swim a solid swim to get through…
“Honestly, I’m exhausted. I keep thinking back to Beijing, it was the same as this morning’s heats. (Michael) Phelps won eight gold. I have done two and I’m wrecked. It puts into perspective for me how amazing he was. I’m going to rest up as much as I can and get ready for my last race at the Olympics.”
The Tasmanian agreed it was a relief to not have to swim in great rival Katie Ledecky’s heat tonight – but had been thriving on the intense competition.
“Definitely. I love racing Katie but it is nice to be on my own a little bit. It’s been really good this week. We’ve been getting along really well. We’ve really enjoyed racing each other. I mean, we don’t get to do it often. It’s so fun for us to be able to race. So, I am looking forward to two days’ time.”
Ledecky won her heat in 8:15.67s while Aussie Kiah Melverton also qualified for the final on Saturday morning (AEST).
Meanwhile, Kaylee McKeown set the fastest time in qualifying for the semi-finals of the 200m backstroke.
McKeown sizzled for a 2.08:18 in the final heat while Emily Seebohm also went through equal-eighth fastest.
And Australia qualified fourth fastest for the final of the historic 4x100m medley relay in Tokyo.
The team of Zac Stubblety-Cook, Bronte Campbell, Isaac Cooper and Brianna Throssell finished second in their heat behind China with a time of 3:42.35.
Great Britain, the USA and China were the fastest qualifiers.
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