SWIMMING HIGHLIGHTS | RECORDS BROKEN IN GLASGOW

 

MADELEINE MCCANN'S BROTHER SEAN, 21, COMPLETING FOR SCOTLAND IN COMMONWEALTH GAMES

The Games, which take place in Glasgow from this Thursday until 2 August 2026, will mark Sean McCann's Commonwealth debut for Scotland

(Image: Getty Images for Commonwealth Sport)

Madeleine McCann’s brother will take part in the Commonwealth Games after being selected to swim for Scotland. Sean McCann is getting ready to step out onto the global stage this week when the Games begin in Glasgow.

Madeleine was three when she went missing from her family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in southern Portugal on May 3 2007, shortly before her birthday. Sean and his twin sister Amelie were just two when their older sister disappeared.

According to Scottish Swimming, Sean will compete in the freestyle disciplines as he looks to qualify for Team GB and swim at the LA Olympics in 2028. The 21-year-old began competing aged eight and previously raced for Scotland at the Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad and Tobago in 2023 in the 400m and 1500m freestyle.

Speaking about his competitive journey a few years ago on the Joe Humphries Memorial Trust website, he revealed: “I started competitive sport when I was eight, joining Charnwood triathlon club. It was here that I discovered my passion for swimming and I joined Loughborough Town swimming club to increase the number of swim sessions I did per week.

"At the age of 10, I was selected to swim at City of Leicester and I have since gone on to win multiple county titles as well as becoming regional and National champion in my age group. In order to have achieved this, I have had to remain extremely dedicated, getting up at 4am multiple mornings each week to train, since the age of 11.

"I train nine times a week in the pool, as well as three gym sessions, totalling over 20 hours of training per week. I’m aiming to compete at the 2026 Commonwealth Games and also the 2028 Olympics in LA.”

It is not known if his parents Kate and Gerry McCann will be in attendance at the Tollcross International Swimming Centre during the 11-day event, which begins on Thursday, July 23.

Mr and Mrs McCann criticised a true-crime drama about their daughter’s disappearance back in May, saying the programme was made without their consultation or consent.

Kate and Gerry said they 'had no involvement whatsoever' in the making of Channel 5’s 'Under Suspicion: Kate McCann', which depicts Madeleine’s mother being treated as a suspect during the investigation into her disappearance in May 2007.

In a statement released on the day the show aired, Kate and Gerry raised concerns over the 'negative impact' such programmes have on their family as they continue to grieve Madeleine’s disappearance 19 years on.

Kate McCann, the mother of the missing British girl Madeleine, carries her son Sean after piking him up from the local nursery at the Ocean Club holiday resort on May 22, 2007 in Praia da Luz, Portugal. (Image: Getty Images)

“Thank you to everyone who has offered support & kindness this month,” they wrote on the Find Madeleine Campaign website. “May is never the easiest. We usually start to feel a bit ‘lighter’ at this stage of the month.

“We are disappointed however, knowing that a Channel 5 ‘docu-drama’ will air tonight. We have not given, or been asked for, our consent and have had no involvement whatsoever in its making.

“We fail to see how it will help. Programmes like this, always have a negative impact on our family.”

The Metropolitan Police’s probe into the 2007 disappearance of three-year-old Madeleine has been active since 2011. German authorities identified Christian Brueckner as the prime suspect in Madeleine’s case back in 2022.

Gerry (L) and Kate McCann (R) leave their home in Rothley, Leicestershire in central England with daughter Amelie and son Sean, 12 September 2007. (Image: Getty Images)

However, Brueckner has never been charged over Madeleine’s disappearance and has previously denied any involvement. Speaking in December, dad Gerry, from Glasgow, said the hope of finding her after all this time is 'slim', but not 'extinguished'.

“Madeleine’s been missing for 18 years, and the bottom line is, we still don’t know what’s happened to her,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. Gerry added: “I don’t even mean ‘convincing’ evidence – there is no evidence to say she’s dead.

“Now we fully understand she may be dead, it may even be probable, but we don’t know that. I’d love to find her alive, but we need to find out what happened and bring whoever’s responsible to justice, and other children and people are at risk while that perpetrator is free.”

- Connor O'Neill

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PARKAS AND REGAN SMITH'S MITTENS: WHY OLYMPIC SWIMMERS DRESS WARM BEFORE RACES

    

USA before the women's 100m backstroke final at the Paris La Défense Arena during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France. (Photo By Brendan Moran/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

  

While it might make sense for Keaton Jones, an ice swimming world champion, to come out in a snowsuit before his race out of habit, but why do other swimmers wear those large coats? And why does the world record holder Regan Smith wear mittens? As the 2024 Paris Olympic Games continue, let’s address a question that’s been on many people’s minds: why do swimmers dress like that? Is the air really that cold?

In the swimming world, athletes refer to these large coats as parkas. Swimmers strive to keep their muscles warm and loose, especially after warming up in the pool. This helps improve their range of motion, reduces the risk of injury and maintains their core body temperature while increasing blood flow. Overall, these benefits can help improve swimming performance.

According to the European Journal of Sport Science, a study concluded that “Wearing warm clothing during a 30-min transition phase improved swimming performance by 0.6%, compared to limited clothing.” The study involved nine competitive swimmers and included a week of rest before changing conditions.

Psychological readiness is also crucial. Swimmers might listen to music, slap their muscles to increase blood flow, wear their cap and goggles, swing their arms and jump up and down. Climbing out of the water after warmups and sitting around cold is probably at the bottom of a swimmer’s list of preferred preparations.

Regan Smith, 22, is from Minnesota and currently trains under Bob Bowman, who is known for coaching Michael Phelps. At the Tokyo Olympic Games, Smith won silver medals in both the 200 butterfly and the 4x100 medley relay. In a medley relay, each swimmer competes in a different stroke in the following order: backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, and freestyle. Smith also earned a bronze medal in the 100 backstroke.

At the 2024 Olympic Trials, Smith set a world record in the 100 backstroke with a time of 57.13. She also won first place in three events: the 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke and 200 butterfly. Additionally, Smith has earned five gold medals, three silver medals and one bronze at various World Championships.

So far in Paris, she has secured silver medals in both the 100 backstroke and 200 butterfly, with her time in the 200 butterfly setting a new American record of 2:03.84. Still to come, Smith will compete in the 200 backstroke final later today.

Smith is often seen wearing a parka and even pink mittens before her races to keep warm. If a world record holder like her follows this routine, it’s no surprise that many other swimmers do the same.

- Casey Murphy 

KATIE LEDECKY IS ON 🔥 AT THE PARIS OLYMPICS 2024

 No other swimmer was even in the frame when Katie Ledecky finished 😳

Absolute DOMINANCE as she breaks the women's 1500m freestyle Olympic record 🔥

US SWIM GREAT PHELPS TELLS CONGRESS THAT OLYMPIC ANTI-DOPING EFFORTS FALL SHORT

Reuters 

U.S. swimming great Michael Phelps told a congressional panel on Tuesday that anti-doping measures "have fallen short" in a case involving Chinese swimmers ahead of this summer's Paris Olympics.

Phelps, fellow gold medalist Allison Schmitt and Travis Tygart, chief executive for the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, testified to lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations about the measures led by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

"It is clear to me that any attempts of reform at WADA have fallen short, and there are still deeply rooted systemic problems that prove detrimental to the integrity of international sports and athletes right to fair competition, time and time again," Phelps said at the hearing.

Phelps, with 28 medals to his name, is the most-decorated Olympian of all time. Schmitt won 10 medals over four games. Neither will compete in Paris.

WADA in April confirmed reports that nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers tested positive for trimetazidine, a banned drug found in heart medication, before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Schmitt urged lawmakers to hold WADA and the global anti-doping system accountable.

"If we win, let it be because we earned it. And if we lose, let it be because the competition was fair," Schmitt said.

WADA was invited to testify but declined to do so, citing the hearing's focus on the case of the Chinese swimmers.

"WADA considers it inappropriate to be pulled into a political debate before a U.S. congressional committee regarding a case from a different country, especially while an independent review into WADA's handling of the case is ongoing," the organization said in a statement.

Global Athlete, an international athlete-led movement, wrote in an open letter to WADA that sportspersons were left with "little trust" in the anti-doping system following the case of the Chinese swimmers.

"For over a month, questions have been posed to WADA regarding both the agency's actions prior to the allegations becoming public and the reactions since," the letter read.

"Instead of transparently addressing these questions directly, WADA has remained steadfast in their narrative which has provided no clarity on the matter."

WADA vigorously defended its processes and initial handling of the case before saying it would launch an independent review.

CHINADA, China's anti-doping agency, has said the swimmers were inadvertently exposed because of contamination and that they should not be held liable for the positive results. China named its 31-member swim team this month.

WADA said in April it would send a compliance team to assess China's anti-doping program, but leading swimmers, including seven-time gold medalist Katie Ledecky, who is competing in Paris, have continued to express concern.

Lawmakers of both parties slammed WADA's handling of the case.

WADA's refusal to testify was "completely unacceptable," Republican Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers said, pointing out that the agency received over $3 million in funding from the U.S. government last year.

Last month, a separate House committee called for the Justice Department and the International Olympic Committee to launch probes into the doping case involving the Chinese swimmers.

Phelps also said in prepared testimony that he has close friends who were affected by the case.

"Many of them will live with the 'what ifs' for the rest of their lives," Phelps said.

"As athletes, our faith can no longer be blindly placed in the World Anti-Doping Agency, an organization that continuously proves that it is either incapable or unwilling to enforce its policies consistently around the world."

TRIALS OVER, US SWITCH FOCUS TO AUSTRALIA SHOWDOWN IN PARIS

USA TODAY Sports 

 Katie Ledecky and a powerhouse American swim team will turn their attention to another Summer Games showdown with arch-rivals Australia after the U.S. Olympic trials concluded in Indianapolis on Sunday.

After nine days of intense competition at Lucas Oil Stadium, normally the home of the NFL's Indianapolis Colts, the final tickets to Paris were handed out with Simone Manuel winning the 50m freestyle and Bobby Finke the men's 1,500m.

Manuel, the first Black woman to win an individual Olympic swimming gold medal at the 2016 Rio Games, won the 'splash and dash' in 24.13 seconds, just .02 head of Gretchen Walsh, who also earned a spot in the event in Paris.

"I put in a lot of work to get to this point," said Manuel. "I wasn't feeling too confident after last night (in the heats), I spent a lot of time watching races where I won and I really wanted to channel that Simone because I know I am a winner and that's what I did tonight."

Finke, gold medallist in the 800m and 1,500m freestyle at the Tokyo Olympics, will defend both titles in Paris after touching first in the final event of the meeting in 14:40.28.

David Johnston finished 12 seconds back of the winner but the result was good enough to earn him a spot on his first Olympic team.

With the U.S. and Australian Olympic trials wrapped up the stage is now set for what is set to be an explosive competition in the Paris pool.

Team USA will once again be targeting top spot in the pool after winning 11 gold medals and 30 overall.

But Australian swimmers are heading to France on a mission to end the American reign after coming close in Japan with nine golds among their 21 total.

"This has been a legendary rivalry in our sport and it is shaping up again to be a really exciting one, both sides of the pool, men and women," U.S. swimming great Michael Phelps told NBC Sports.

Competing in her fourth Olympics, Ledecky will be counted on to make a major contribution to the U.S. medal haul after winning four individual events (200, 400, 800 and 1,500 freestyle) at the trials.

A seven-time Olympic champion and one of the all-time greats of the sport, Ledecky's battles with Australian Ariarne Titmus and Canada's teenage wunderkind Summer McIntosh are expected to be one of the highlights of the Paris Olympics.

With Ledecky and another seven-time gold medallist Caeleb Dressel leading the way, the U.S. will not lack for experience in a squad packed with Olympic and world champions and world record holders.

But the U.S. roster also includes some fresh faces, like 17-year-old Thomas Heilman, who will contest the 100m and 200m butterfly and becomes the youngest male to make the U.S. swim squad since Michael Phelps at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Dressel, winner of five golds in Tokyo, did not qualify to defend his 100m freestyle crown but will be kept busy in Paris in the 50m freestyle and 100m butterfly as well as potentially being involved in three relay teams.

Regan Smith is also set for a heavy workload after winning the women's 200m butterfly and 100m and 200m backstroke.

The 22-year-old added some spice to the U.S. and Australia rivalry when she regained the 100m backstroke world record from Kaylee McKeown.

Walsh opened the trials by setting a world record in the women's 100m butterfly on the opening day and will travel to Paris with her older sister Alex, who earned her spot on the team after finishing second in the 200m individual medley.

They will not be the only siblings on the U.S. squad - Alex Shackell qualified in the women's 200m butterfly and her brother Aaron won the 400m freestyle.

- Reuters 

TANZANIA JUNIOR SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS 2024

 

KATIE LEDECKY HEADING FOR HER FOURTH OLYMPICS, WINS 400 FREESTYLE AT IS SWIMMING TRIALS

AP Photo 

 INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Katie Ledecky is heading to her fourth Olympics, an accomplishment that seemed unimaginable when she was a 15-year-old kid in London.

These days, it wouldn't seem like a Summer Games without her.

As steady as ever, Ledecky cruised to victory in the 400-meter freestyle at the U.S. swimming trials on Saturday night.

She makes qualifying for the Olympics look so much easier than it is. Ledecky became just the ninth U.S. swimmer to qualify at least four times for the sport's grandest stage.

“I pride myself on that consistency,” she said. “Sometimes it can be tough to feel you're not having a breakthrough. But being really consistent is something I'm really happy with. I've learned to really enjoy training and take advantage of the moment.”

AP Photo 

Cheered on by a crowd of 20,689 at the home of the NFL's Indianapolis Colts, Ledecky touched the wall in the temporary pool in 3 minutes, 58.35 seconds.

She improved on her time of 3:59.99 in the morning preliminaries and set herself up to make a run at another gold against a loaded field at the Paris Games.

The Australian “Terminator,” Ariarne Titmus, is the defending Olympic champion and world-record holder in the 400 free. Canadian phenom Summer McIntosh is also expected to contend for the top spot on the podium.

In Tokyo, Ledecky settled for the silver behind Titmus — the first individual loss of the American's Olympic career.

She'll have her work cut out for her in Paris, as well.

Titmus is coming off an Australian trials where she broke the world record in the 200 free and barely missed knocking off her own mark in the 400 free, winning with a time of 3:55.44 — nearly 3 seconds faster than Ledecky's pace in Indianapolis.

“It's going to be a great field,” Ledecky said. “I've always done a pretty solid job in the period between the trials and the games at being faster at the games. The goal is no different this time around. Hopefully, that will put me in a good position in the 400.”

AP Photo 

The 27-year-old Ledecky is set to swim four events at her nation's trials, all of them freestyle events ranging from 200 to 1,500 meters. She already has six individual gold medals — more than any female swimmer in Olympic history — and an overall haul of 10 medals that includes seven golds.

“I never thought I would make it there,” Ledecky said, remembering her Olympic debut at the 2012 London Games. “I never dreamed of that as a young kid.”

After winning a surprising gold in her only event, the 800 free, Ledecky was determined to reach ever greater heights.

“I wanted to get back to that level, prove that I wasn't just a one-hit wonder,” she said. “But at the same time, I reminded myself that anything more than that is just like icing on the cake, the cherry on top.”

That makes her appreciate a fourth trip to the Olympics even more.

Then there's Aaron Shackell, a local favorite from suburban Carmel, who will be heading to the Olympics for the first time after winning the men’s 400 freestyle.

Shackell touched in 3:45.46 to hold off Kieran Smith, the bronze medalist in this event at the Tokyo Olympics. Smith used a strong finishing kick to claim the runner-up spot in 3:45.76, which should be enough to get him back to the Summer Games.

AP Photo 

The top two in each individual event are expected to make the powerhouse American team, which also bodes well for Paige Madden, the runner-up behind Ledecky in 4:02.08.

Ledecky and Shackell were both overshadowed on the opening night of the trials by Gretchen Walsh. The 21-year-old from the University of Virginia set a world record in a semifinal heat of the 100-meter butterfly with a time of 55.18.

Walsh was more than a half-second under world-record pace at the turn and finished strong to eclipse the mark of 55.48 set by Sweden’s Sarah Sjöström at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

“There has been a little bit of a buzz out there,” Walsh said. "I think going into tonight, you know, like I knew it would take a (55) point-4 or I guess point-5, but I didn’t think I was going to do it tonight. I just knew I wanted to go a fast time and now here I am -- a world record holder.”

Walsh held her hand over her mouth as she looked at the scoreboard in disbelief, a “WR” beside her name. But she's still got some work to do to make her first Olympic team.

The 100 fly final Sunday night also includes Torri Huske, Regan Smith and Claire Curzan — all medalists at the Tokyo Games. Shackell's sister, Alex, also advanced to the final and will be looking to join her sibling on the Olympic team.

- PAUL NEWBERRY

ISRAELI SWIMMER BOOED BY CROWD IN SOUR FINISH TO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

Reuters 

 An Israeli medallist was booed by the crowd in a sour finish to the Doha World Championships on Sunday, taking the gloss off some stunning achievements in the pool highlighted by Sarah Sjostrom's third consecutive 50 metres freestyle world title.

Anastasia Gorbenko took silver in the women's 400m individual medley but her celebrations were spoiled as a chorus of boos rained down from the terraces, drowning out her post-race interview by the floor presenter.

The jeers continued as Gorbenko left the Aspire Dome pool, and she was booed again at the medals ceremony though there was also applause. Briton Freya Constance Colbert won the race.

The presence of Israeli swimmers at the championships has drawn criticism from some Qatari media outlets and pro-Palestine groups amid Israel's military campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas's Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel.

Gorbenko said she had been booed multiple times during the week and it had affected her emotionally. But she was defiant that she deserved her moment on the podium.

WORLD AQUATICS STANDS BY IT'S STRICT RUSSIA POLICY FOR OLYMPICS

Reuters 

 World Aquatics (WA) are standing by their strict criteria for Russian and Belarusian swimmers to return to international competition - even if it means some of the world's best from the two countries boycott the Paris Olympics.

Swimming's global governing body approved the return of Russian and Belarusian participants last September after banning them following Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

They can only compete as neutrals, they are banned from relay events and they must accept strict criteria including no "explicit or implicit" statements of support for the war in Ukraine, which Russia calls a "special military operation".

They are also subject to stringent anti-doping requirements and a ban on talking to media during competition.

Russia's swimming federation condemned the protocols as unacceptable and discriminatory, and no Russian swimmer entered the World Championships currently being held in Doha.

"As I sit here right now, I'm standing by the policy 100%" WA Executive Director Brent Nowicki told Reuters.

"I don't think it's too restrictive. I think it's a policy that reflects the voice of our community, and whether or not they want to do it is up to them."

AUSTRALIA'S O'CALLAGHAN SMASHES 14-YEAR-OLD RECORD TO WIN WORLD TITLE

Reuters 

Australia's Mollie O'Callaghan finished with a flourish to break the longest-standing world record in women's swimming, claiming the 200 metres freestyle title in a time of one minute, 52.85 seconds at the World Aquatics Championships on Wednesday.

O'Callaghan broke the performance-enhancing bodysuit era mark of 1:52.98 set by Italian Federica Pellegrini at the 2009 worlds in Rome, and was 0.16 seconds ahead of silver medallist Ariarne Titmus of Australia.

Summer McIntosh of Canada was 0.80 seconds behind to take bronze in a world junior record time.

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