Flynn Southam Stakes A Claim For New Age Australian 4x200m Freestyle Relay Team For Paris Olympics
The race for what could well be a new look Australian men’s 4x200m freestyle relay team for the Paris Olympics just started to get a whole lot hotter after 18-year-old Flynn Southam unleashed his 1:46.43 at the Australian Age Championships on the Gold Coast last night,
The boy from Bond (Coach: Chris Mooney) who has gate-crashed his way into Australia’s gold medal relays at the Commonwealth Games and World Championships has declared he wants “in” for his first Olympic team with his second fastest time ever to win the 18 Years 200m freestyle final last night.
The new look Australian team could arguably be Australia’s youngest ever Olympic 4×2 squad with Southam’s time sitting as the fifth fastest time of the season behind: Maxmillian Giuliani, 20, (Maimi, QLD) 1:44.79; Thomas Neill, 21, (Rackley, QLD) 1:45.78; Elijah Winnington, 23 (St Peters Western, QLD) 1:45.90 and Kai Taylor 20, (St Peters Western, QLD) 1:46.37 and Kyle Chalmers (St Andrews, QLD) 1:46.97.
Then there are those waiting in the wings: Sam Short, 20, (Rackley, QLD) 1:47.05; Charlie Hawke, 21, (Hunter, NSW/Uni of Alabama) 1:47.65; Zac Incerti, 27, (USC Spartans, QLD) 1:48.61; Harrison Turner, 19, (Nudgee, QLD) 1:48.65; Ed Sommerville, 18 (Brisbane Grammar, QLD) 1:48.66 and Alex Graham, 28 (Miami, QLD) 1:48.78) and Anders McAlpine,18, (Churchie, QLD) 1:48.84.
Graham, Incerti, Neil and Kyle Chalmers won bronze behind Great Britain and Russia to claim bronze in Tokyo three years ago while Taylor joined Chalmers, Graham and Neill for bronze in the 2023 World’s behind the imposing Brits.
And following the British Trials, it was clearly evident Team GB will start red-hot favourites to defend their Tokyo gold after Matt Richards (1:44.69), Duncan Scott (1:44.75), Olympic champion Tom Dean (1:45.09) and the never-say-die James Guy (1:45.28) produced a race for the ages to wrap up a classy Trials meet.
So strong are the Brits that Dean doesn’t get the chance to defend his title in Paris – making him even hungrier for a successful relay defence.
Australian new faces, led by Australia’s latest Tasmanian find in Giuliani (who has been under Richard Scarce at Miami for the past 18 months), Taylor, Southam, Short, Harrison and Somerville will all be on show when the Australian Championships kick off on the Gold Coast next Wednesday.
And it will be a case of the old verses the new in the next round of racing in the countdown to the June Trials and those all-important top eight places in the final.
Australia has not tasted 4×2 gold since the team of Ian Thorpe, Michael Klim, William Kirby and Todd Pearson rocked Sydney in 2000 – and before that it was 1956 and 1912.
For Southam, who also won the 400m freestyle earlier in the week with his 3:52.13, his racing schedule continues over the next few days with the 50m freestyle final tonight (heat swim today of 22.67) and the 100m freestyle on Saturday.
Meanwhile in other eye-catching swims, 16-year-old Josh Conias (Somerville House, QLD) gave a Chalmers record a real nudge, winning his Age group 50m freestyle final last night in 22.35 – just 0.02 outside the 2015 mark set by Chalmers – 12 months before he became the Olympic champion.
In one of the closest finishes of last night’s finals, three athletes swam under the two-minute mark in the girls 17 years 200m freestyle. Giselle Davey (Caulfield, VIC) clocked a PB of1:59.17 to win the gold from Milla Jansen (Bond, QLD) 1:59.52 and last year’s Youth Commonwealth Games 7-timke medallist Inez Miller (Fenix, WA), 1:59.72) third.
While Manly’s Youth Commonwealth Games star Lillie McPherson from Lane 8 completed the double, adding the 50m freestyle gold to the 100m freestyle gold she won earlier at this meet. McPherson clocked 25.73 with Frankie Somerville (Cranbrook, NSW) 25.92) second and Asha Ring (SOPAC, NSW) 26.06).
The Age Championships Continue until Saturday.