Another day, another gold. Star Team SA swimmer Pieter Coetze claimed his second gold medal at the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup in Incheon on Friday when he added the 50m backstroke to his 100m success in the South Korean city.
Last week Coetze had bagged the 100m and 200m backstroke double and finished with a silver in the two-lap dash in the 25m short-course pool in Shanghai. A week later, in the second of the three legs of this Swimming World Cup series, he took 50m gold in 22.80sec.
It was referred to internationally as “a mild upset” given he upset last week’s winner and favourite, Isaac Cooper of Australia.
Coetze’s time of 22.80 here registered a new South African national record and African continental record of 22.84 put up at the 2022 Short Course World Championships where he finished fifth.
Just for good measure he claimed the bronze medal in the men’s 100m freestyle final in 46.74 to up South Africa’s medals tally to three at the meeting.
Last week he had won four of the nine medals earned by the country in Shanghai.
In the last event on the Friday programme South Africa’s Chad Le Clos, 32 years of age, was runner-up in the 100m butterfly in 1:51.07 to bring his monster World Cup medal haul total to 228.
The final day of the meeting will be held on Saturday.
SA’S MEDALS IN SHANGHAI and INCHEON
(3) Gold
Pieter Coetze (50m, 100m, 200m backstroke)
(3) Silver
Pieter Coetze (50m backstroke)
Chad Le Clos (100m, 200m butterfly)
(6) Bronze
Pieter Coetze (men’s 100m freestyle x2)
Chad Le Clos (100m butterfly)
Rebecca Meder (100m breaststroke)
Rebecca Meder (200m breaststroke)
Rebecca Meder (200m individual medley)