Paris Olympics, Day 9: Sarah Sjostrom Completes Sprint Double with 50 Free Gold

Photo Courtesy: Giorgio Scala/DeepBlueMedia

Paris Olympics, Day 9: Sarah Sjostrom Completes Sprint Double with 50 Free Gold

Sarah Sjostrom arrived at her first Olympics in 2008 at age 14, made a few ripples for Sweden and left the Games a 15-year-old.

Later this month, Sjostrom will turn 31. She’ll do so as one of the most distinguished female sprinters of all time.

Sjostrom added to her legacy Sunday night on the final evening the Paris Olympics with a swim of 23.71 seconds to win the women’s 50 freestyle.

“I never thought I would win a gold medal at my fifth Olympics,” said Sjostrom, who pulled double duty at night with the women’s medley relay.

The medal is her sixth at the Olympics, and she’s now won the 100 fly (2016), 100 free (2024) and 50. It’s her 96th medal in international competition and proof that she is not slowing down even as she has ticked into her 30s. Sjostrom is the fifth woman in the last seven Olympics to do the 50/100 double, including Emma McKeon at the Tokyo Games.

World record: Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden, 23.61 (2023)
Olympic record: Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden, 23.66 (2024)
Tokyo Olympic champion: Emma McKeon, Australia, 23.81

Silver went to Australia’s Meg Harris in 23.97. Zhang Yufei of China picked up her third bronze medal of the meet in 24.20, edging out Gretchen Walsh by .01 to add to the pile of American heartbreak this week.

Sjostrom, who is typically fastest in semifinals, showed her speed there by setting an Olympic record of 23.66. That downed McKeon’s winning time from Tokyo by a substantial margin.

Sjostrom finished second to McKeon in the final in Tokyo has been bent on rectifying that ever since. She’s won each of the last three World Championships in this event, part of her 25 World Championship medals. Finally getting the gold in the 50 free is extra special for her.

“It’s been a great journey with the 50 freestyle,” she said. “In Rio, I didn’t make the final, and in Tokyo, I got the silver medal, which was like a gold medal to me because I didn’t have as good of preparations for Tokyo. This time, I definitely had a great preparation but also I’m a little older. I’m super proud of how I managed to come back and win silver in Tokyo, but this is of course amazing and it fees unreal to go away from this competition with two gold medals.”

Sjostrom was asked if she’s planning on swimming on to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. While she plans to continue swimming past Paris, she’s cognizant that this double may be the high-water mark on her career.

“Never know what will happen, but I can definitely say, I’m not going to be better than this,” she said. “This is the peak of my career, for sure. I’m so proud of what I’ve done my whole career. I’m definitely going to continue swimming for many years, but how can I top this ever?”

Harris, 22, gets her first individual medley, after four relay medals (one of them silver later in the night for the medley relay, on which she swam in prelims). While she enjoys being up on the podium with a team, the individual hits a little different.

“I came in here with the relay and this 50-meter freestyle and I think I just did the best with both races,” she said. “And I couldn’t ask for more than that.”

Zhang’s medal, plus a bronze in the 400 medley relay to end the night, gives her six for the Paris Games, with one silver and five bronze.

Wu Qingfeng and Kasia Wasick, who tied for fifth in Tokyo, were the only holdovers from that Olympic final. Wasick, who won bronze at the 2024 World Championships and silver in 2022, was fifth. Wu was seventh. Five through eight were staggered at a margin of .02 each, with Neza Klancar sixth for Slovakia and Shayna Jack eight for Australia.

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