Dec 04
SINGAPORE, 4 DECEMBER 2020– Day 2 of the Singapore National Olympic Qualifiers 2020 continued on Friday, 4 December at the OCBC Aquatic Centre as Singapore’s top swimmers continued to get the groove of racing back following months of inactivity due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Despite the lack of racing opportunities in the past months, Teong Tzen Wei, the South-east Asian Games champion in the 50m Butterfly, showed no signs of rustiness as he went close to the Olympic Games ‘A’ cut qualifying marks not once but twice in the Men’s 100m Butterfly.
He clocked a time of 53.04s in the morning heats, before lowering that time with a 52.55s swim in the finals, with both timings well below the Olympic Games “B” Cut qualifying time of 53.52s.
“I think my performance was quite good today, judging that we had short notice of the meet. I came into the meet with quite high expectations of myself to maybe clock a time close to the Olympic Games “A” cut for the 100m Butterfly, and I did a new personal best, so I am quite happy with my swim”, said the 23 year-old.
When asked about whether he was on the right track on qualifying for the Olympics, Teong added, “I would say that it is a good stepping stone and I am looking forward to the extra three months to cut down 0.7s to meet the “A” cut timing.”
The Olympic Games “A” cut timing for the Men’s 100m Butterfly, is 51.96s. Both Joseph Schooling and Quah Zheng Wen have qualified for the event.
Lionel Khoo, the Men’s National Record holder in the 100m Breaststroke, had his first race today, and although he finished second in the final behind Maximillian Ang, was just glad to be back in the pool.
“I came into the meet without having much expectations, so time wise it did not really matter to me. I am just glad to be back in the pool racing. It is a weird feeling but I am thankful that we have this competition and hopefully we will have more”, said the 25 year-old.
For 2019 SEA Games debutant and rising star, Ashley Lim, who finished second in the Women’s 400m Freestyle final, the qualifiers are the perfect gauge to see where she currently stands.
She said, “Prior to this competition, I did have some expectations. I wanted to see where I am after training and after circuit breaker. Today’s swim is a good gauge to see where I can improve on in terms of my training, what I need to add, and what I need to work on.”
Day 3 of the Singapore National Olympic Qualifiers on Saturday, 5 December will see the Men’s and Women’s 200m Freestyle, Men’s and Women’s 200m Butterfly and the Men’s 1500m Freestyle.