Share

Townsend bags two medals

Johannesburg - Darian Townsend earned another two bronze medals to continue his fine form in the Swimming World Cup series on the opening day of the fifth leg in Berlin, Germany, on Saturday night.

The versatile South African was involved in a titanic battle in the men's 100 metres freestyle with the charismatic Anthony Ervin of the United States and Australian Tommaso D'Orsogna.

Ervin took the race out hard in a fast 22.03 seconds at the halfway mark, and the American kept going to seal a well-earned victory in 46.71, with D'Orsogna clocking 46,99, just edging out Townsend who touched in a personal best time of 47.02.

Later, in the men's 100m individual medley, Trinidad's George Bovell was in amazing form as he won in 51.20, beating Kenneth To of Australia who touched the wall in 51.53. Townsend was third in 53.04, with Hungarian Laszlo Cseh taking fourth in 53.11.

Neil Versfeld, the only other South African competing at the event, was seventh in the men's 50m breaststroke in 27.45 -- his first race back after a bout of flu.

Townsend was set to tackle the 200m freestyle and 200m individual medley races on Sunday's final day, while Versfeld was entered in the men's 100m breaststroke event.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
26% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1470 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2246 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE