Kyle Lee wins bronze medal in men's 10km at World Aquatics Championships
The men's race became the first final to be decided at the world championships in Singapore after the women's 10km event was moved from Tuesday to Wednesday because of water quality concerns.
The two open-water events were also postponed from Wednesday morning to the afternoon at Palawan Beach on Sentosa Island, south of Singapore, again because of the dirty sea water.
Organisers then said water samples collected on Tuesday afternoon had shown a "significant improvement" and went ahead with Wednesday competition, with the women's 10km race to follow.
German Florian Wellbrock won his sixth open-water world championship, clocking 1 hour, 59 minutes, 55.50 seconds.
He beat Italian Gregorio Paltrinieri by 3.70 seconds, with Lee 14.80 seconds behind Wellbrock in third place.
The Paris Olympian beat another German, Oliver Klemet, by just 0.1 of a second to finish on the podium.
Nicolas Sloman, who also competed in Paris, finished eighth.
Wellbrock also won the 10km event at the Tokyo Olympics.
Moesha Johnson, who won silver in the 10km at last year's Olympics, and fellow Paris competitor Chelsea Gubecka are the Australians in the women's race on Wednesday.
Other open-water races in Singapore are also set for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Water quality was a key issue at last year's Olympics, with the triathlon and marathon swimming events held in the River Seine.
After a massive project to clean up the river for the Games, heavy rain meant the men's individual triathlon was postponed by one day. All other events went ahead as scheduled.
Once she competes in her open-water events, Johnson will also contest the 800m and 1500m freestyle in the pool at the worlds.
AAP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
8 hours ago
- News.com.au
World Swimming Championships: Shocked Harris wins 50m freestyle world championship
Meg Harris is Australia's newest world champion, scorching to a stunning 50m freestyle victory at the world titles in Singapore. Harris, the Paris Olympic silver medalist, won the gold medal in 24.02 seconds. A five-time world champion already, the 23-year-old finally has an individual title to add to the relay golds she's accumulated since Budapest in 2022. Harris touched the wall 0.24 seconds ahead of China's Qingfeng Wu, with Yujie Cheng third. Earlier, Isaac Cooper was seventh in the men's 50m backstroke.
News.com.au
20 hours ago
- News.com.au
Aussie crowned ‘fastest man in water' as queen McKeown does it again
New father Cam McEvoy has powered to the 50m freestyle world gold to go with his Olympic crown, while Australia's Kaylee McKeown underlined her backstroke dominance with a world championships double after winning the 200m in Singapore McEvoy— who is at his seventh world championships — reclaimed the title he won in 2023, turning on the afterburners in the second half of the sprint to win in 21.14sec. Britain's Ben Proud took silver in 21.26, with Jack Alexy of the United States in bronze in 21.46. McEvoy's son Hartley was born only last month and the swimming ace gave a shoutout to his family after victory. Being a father had given him a new outlook, he said. 'Unreal, it's been a pretty hectic preparation,' said McEvoy. Olympic champion Cam McEvoy still the fastest man in water. Wins the world 50m freestyle title in 21.14s, faster than his Paris swim. — Nicole Jeffery (@nicolejeffery) August 2, 2025 'Just glad I got my hand on the wall first and in a great time. 'Enjoy it while it lasts, but I'm so excited to go home.' Meanwhile, McKeown again got the better of Regan Smith, touching the wall in a championships-record 2min 03.33sec to beat her American arch-rival into second place in 2:04.29. Another American, Claire Curzan, was third in 2:06.04. McKeown picked up the 100m backstroke gold earlier this week in Singapore — also beating Smith into second — for her sixth career world title. She also won the 100-200 backstroke double at the Tokyo and Paris Olympics. McKeown made a fast start but Smith held on and overtook her rival heading into the final lap. McKeown switched up the gears to regain the lead and power towards the finish, although she fell just short of her own world record. The Australian's time was the third-fastest swim ever. Later, United States great Katie Ledecky beat Summer McIntoshand and held off Australia's Lani Pallister in a titanic three-way battle to win a thrilling 800m freestyle world title. Ledecky won her seventh career gold in the event but she was challenged like never before, touching the wall in a championship-record 8min 05.62sec — a fingertip ahead of Pallister (8:05.98) and McIntosh (8:07.29). It was Canadian sensation McIntosh's first defeat of the championships and ended her bid to match Michael Phelps as the only swimmer ever to win five individual golds at a single world championships. The 18-year-old has already won three golds this week in Singapore. Ledecky, 28, had too much staying power for her younger rival, with Pallister also in gold-medal contention until the final lunge for the line. One of the greatest races you will see. Lani Pallister (8:05.98) has beaten Summer McIntosh in the 800 freestyle to take a wonderful silver medal. Who saw that coming?! Almost a five second PB. Ledecky too good but only wins by 0.36. Come LA, this race could be anything. — Tom Decent (@tomdecent) August 2, 2025 'They pushed me all the way,' said Ledecky, a four-time Olympic champion in the event. 'I'm just really happy I could put that together. I just kept telling myself to trust my legs.' The race was billed as a potential changing of the guard, with McIntosh in red-hot form. She had also threatened Ledecky's world record earlier this year. Pallister was determined to insert her name into the conversation as well, as the Australian kept pace with Ledecky and McIntosh in a fast start. The lead changed hands several times but Ledecky, swimming between her two rivals, looked best-placed to strike for home. In the end it was the American celebrating with her country's flag on the pool deck after an epic race. 'I think I just came into tonight trying to enjoy it as much as I can,' said Ledecky. 'I don't feel like I have much to lose at this point in my career. 'I just try to enjoy it every time I get to walk out in front of a crowd like this.'
ABC News
21 hours ago
- ABC News
Pallister claims silver in 'race of the century' as McEvoy and McKeown become world champions
Australia's Olympic stars have delivered at the swimming world championships in Singapore, with gold medals to freestyle sprinter Cameron McEvoy and backstroke superstar Kaylee McKeown. Alexandria Perkins and Lani Pallister claimed silver. Pallister won silver in a thrilling final of the women's 800m freestyle in a race that has already been described by swimming pundits as the "race of the century". The gold was won by US superstar Katie Ledecky by just 0.36 seconds with Canadian sensation Summer McIntosh 1.31 seconds behind Pallister. Ledecky's time of 8:05.62 is the fourth fastest time in history, while Pallister now slots in at sixth. The three women swam in a virtual straight line through the gripping final, with less than a second separating the trio at every change. The crowd was deafening, realising that they were witnessing one of the great distance swimming races in history. Ledecky kicked in the final 50m, but Pallister stuck doggedly to her way as McIntosh dropped marginally back. The American's gold is her 23rd world championship and her seventh in the 800m alone, 12 years after she won her first. Pallister dropped an astonishing five seconds from her personal best and 10 seconds this year. "Coming home with a silver behind the greatest distance swimmer of all time [Ledecky] is wicked," Pallister said. "Turning with them was so surreal. "I didn't really feel I was in it — I feel like I was watching them two go about their business and I was like on the side going, oh, who's going to win?" Ledecky said it was not the first time she had been involved in a "race of the century". "It was really fun to be part of it," Ledecky said. "Yeah I mean, I think I've been a part of a race of the century maybe six times in the last decade. "It's up to you guys to say what is the race of the century." Pallister said she had been inspired by Ledecky at the start of her career. "To be at the point where it's this exciting and it can be that close for an 800 I think is just incredible for the sport," Pallister said. Ledecky paid tribute to Pallister and her improvement over the past year. "I think just moving forward it's going to be an amazing few years. I can't wait to see what she can do, can't wait to see what Ariarne [Titmus] can do," Ledecky said. "I think there's just a high level of respect we have for each other." McIntosh, who had hoped to win five individual gold medals at these world championships, was bitterly disappointed at coming third. "I hate losing more than I like winning and I think that's a mentality that I've carried with myself throughout my entire career," she said. "The feeling right now is something that I never want to feel again." McEvoy reacted fastest and extended his lead throughout to win the men's 50m freestyle final — the same event he won at the Paris Olympics. McEvoy's time of 21.14 was the fastest this year, beating the 21.30 he recorded in the semifinals and the Australian swimming trials. His win caps off a momentous few weeks, after his wife Maddi gave birth to a baby boy, Harley, last month. McEvoy has spoken openly about his quest for the perfect 50m, as he seeks to break the world record of 20.91 set by Brazilian Cesar Cielo Filho in 2009, during the super suit era. "That's my third quickest time ever, for the prep, exceptional, I'm super happy with that," McEvoy said. He was visibly delighted at his win, punching the water in joy after he finished. He said he was looking forward to some time out of the pool and with his wife and newborn. "I'm going straight to the newborn trenches," he said. "I'll start to do the night routines, learn about Harley more, help Maddi do what she has to do and enjoy the bubble — not rush it." Fresh from qualifying for the final of the men's 50m backstroke final, Australian Isaac Cooper paid tribute to McEvoy. "I've never idolised anybody on the team and I've never said it to his face either, but if there was one person I was going to, it would be Cam," Cooper said. "He's consistently proven that he's the greatest sprint freestyler probably ever and has consistently been on or around world record times. It's quite unbelievable." Minutes after McEvoy's win, McKeown delivered a superb come-from-behind swim to defeat her US rival Regan Smith in the 100m backstroke with a championship record time of 2:03.33. McKeown has now claimed the 100m-200m double, repeating her efforts of the past two Olympics. Smith was 0.03 seconds ahead of McKeown at the 150m mark, but the Australian was brilliant in the final 50m to win by just under a second. After she finished, she looked visibly spent from her exertions as she gasped for air on the lane rope and at one point looked nauseous. "I really wasn't feeling too great heading in you know," she said. "Bit of illness and stuff going around, dealing with a bit of a shoulder, so I just think I had to put my best foot forward tonight and I dug really deep. "I'm really happy with the time that I posted." McKeown and Smith almost invariably swim next to each other in lanes four and five but tonight was a rare exception with Smith in two, and McKeown in six. McKeown said the four lane gap between the rivals worked in her favour. "Something that my coach and I have really been working on is focusing on my own race and I think it really helps being on the outside lane, not seeing the other girls around me and just really focusing on what I've been working on," McKeown said. Australia's Alexandria Perkins set a personal best time to win silver in the women's 50m butterfly, which was won by American Gretchen Walsh. Walsh won in 24.83 seconds, almost half a second ahead of Perkins. Another Australian, Lily Price, came sixth. America is on top of the swimming medal table with eight golds and 26 medals overall. Australia is in second with seven golds, four silvers and six bronze medals.
