Singapore’s Olympic champ Joseph Schooling could only settle for a joint bronze medal at the men’s 100m butterfly final yesterday at the FINA World Championships, where he tied with Britain’s James Guy for a timing of 50.83s.
It was Caeleb Dressel of the United States won the men’s 100m butterfly gold at the world championships on Saturday — just half an hour after also winning the 50m freestyle gold.
The 20-year-old has now won five golds in Budapest — three individuals titles, including the 100m freestyle, plus victories for the USA in the men’s 4x100m freestyle and mixed 4x100m medley. Dressel clocked 49.86sec for the 100m butterfly gold — just 0.04 secs from Michael Phelps’s world record set in 2009 — with Hungarian teenager Kristof Milak claiming silver at 0.76 back.
Milak, who is only 17, clocked a new junior world record of 50.62 seconds.
“I kept pace (with Dressel) for a while, slipped behind a little at the turn, then I went so fast in the second 50 I couldn’t believe it myself,” said Milak. “I saw I was just behind Dressel and knew then it was a good time, but I didn’t think it would be such a good time.”
Bronze went to both Guy and Schooling — the favourite to win the event after he clinched Singapore’s historic gold medal during the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. Speaking to The Straits Times, Schooling expressed disappointment over his performance, admitting that he got his ass kicked.
“It was an unbelievably fast race, Caeleb was amazing, the Hungarian kid came from nowhere with an incredible time,” said Schooling.
“The next three or four years are going to be really interesting between the four of us.”
Additional reporting by Coconuts Singapore
