The gold was Sjöström’s second in five days in Paris. On Wednesday, she won a surprising gold in the double distance, 100 meter freestyle.
That was magical. I never thought I would win two golds in my fifth Olympics. It’s unreal, says Sjöström to Max.
The margin of victory for silver medalist Meg Harris, Australia, was 26 hundredths. Zhang Yufei, China, took bronze. Sjöström was the favorite before Sunday’s final and many thought she would beat her own world record (23.61) after setting an Olympic record (23.66) in Saturday’s one semifinal.
Its a challenge. I feel that the technique fits very well. Today I made a couple of serious mistakes, including being pushed off the podium. I can live at my lowest level, she says after the Olympic gold.
Before the games in Paris, she had an Olympic gold, in the 100 meter butterfly from Rio de Janeiro in 2016. In addition, she has two silvers and a bronze in the Olympic context.
Sjöström’s world record in the 50 freestyle was set during the WC in Fukuoka, Japan, last summer.