Article courtesy of Bond University.
Elijah Winnington has recovered from his devastating Tokyo Olympics campaign to win gold at the World Swimming Championships and set up another chance to podium.
The Hancock Prospecting Swimming Excellence Scholarship student won the 400m freestyle against a brilliant field in Hungary.
Winnington posted a personal best and the fastest time at the event in a decade (3min 41.22sec) when he pulled away in the last lap to relegate German Lukas Martens to silver.
It was a remarkable comeback swim for the 22-year-old Gold Coaster who almost quit the sport a year ago. He was Australia’s number one ranked 400m swimmer heading into the Tokyo Olympics but was undone by nerves on the international stage. He finished a disappointing seventh in the final.
The Bond Bachelor of Business student will be back in the pool tonight chasing another medal in the 200m freestyle final.
Fellow Queensland swimmer Shayna Jack shared her own redemption story following her two-year doping ban. She produced an incredible final sprint to clinch gold for the 4x100m women’s relay team.
In the 4x100m men’s relay final, Rio Olympics champion, Kyle Chalmers gave the United States heart palpations in his blistering anchor leg. The South Australian more than satisfied with silver after he underwent shoulder surgery less than three months ago.
