Tokyo Olympics: Britain’s Adam Peaty defends 100m breaststroke title

Perhaps the surest bet in the pool, Britain’s Adam Peaty repeated as Olympic champion in the men’s 100m breaststroke at the Tokyo Aquatics Center. Peaty was the world-record holder and the first to break both 58 and 57 seconds in his signature event. He posted the fifth fastest time (57.37 s) in history which blew up the field.

Arno Cumminga of the Netherlands won the silver in 58.00 s, while the bronze medal was won by Italy’s Niccol मार्टिन Martinenghi in 58.33. American Michael Andrew was next in 58.84 – the second straight final in which an American swimmer finished fourth and was denied a medal. Maggie McNeil won Canada’s first gold medal in pool with a win in the women’s 100 butterfly.

The defending world champion finished first in 55.59 seconds, beating China’s Zhang Yufei (55.64) to take the top spot. Australia’s Emma McCann won the bronze medal by beating American teenager Tori Huske by a hundredth of a second in 55.72 seconds. Haske stepped out of his style, and appeared closer to the front with a distance of about 10 metres. But she fell short on her final stroke and missed out on a spot on the podium.