True grit has teen in swim team
SWIMMING Australia head coach Jacco Verhaeren has praised the maturity of rising sprint star Jack Cartwright after the teen bounced back from a heart scare earlier in the week to claim his place on the Commonwealth Games team.
Cartwright finished second to Olympic champion Kyle Chalmers, the man with whom he shares the condition supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), in the 100m final on Thursday night to claim his place on the team for the Gold Coast Games.
It was a feat of mental strength that impressed Verhaeren after Cartwright suffered heart palpitations in a heat of the 200m 30 hours earlier, which eventually landed him in hospital.
“I know what he’s been dealing with over the last few weeks, or actually months, and to pull that off is fantastic,” Verhaeren said. “It has [not been an issue] for a long time, so it didn’t really bother him in training or things like that.
“Luckily these are rare incidents but something to check up on and keep an eye on.
“Health always comes first. But Jack has been dealing with shoulder issues and some other injuries as well, so it’s very impressive what he pulled off. “It shows what both [Cartwright and Chalmers] are actually made of. They’re true high performers.”
Cartwright has been managing what doctors have called “presumed SVT” since early 2016, although Wednesday night was the first time he has had an episode in the pool.
“The person I saw in 2016 said I could manage it,” he said. “He gave me three options, to get the ablation [surgery], medication, or just wait it out and see what happens — and I’ve just been waiting it out.
“I guess it’s working pretty well, it’s just unlucky that it happened on Wednesday.”
Cartwright will visit a specialist after the trials to chart a course forward but said the episode was likely to bolster his confidence, rather than rattle him ahead of the Games.
“It’s quite special representing Australia in the blue ribbon event at the Commonwealth Games on home soil,” he said after claiming his 100m berth. “It feels pretty amazing. “I’m pretty proud of myself for bouncing back and being able to handle myself under all this pressure.”
Cartwright will contest the 50m freestyle in a bid to win a second individual swim, although he faces a tough field, including James Magnussen, who will be desperate to seal a solo berth.
Magnussen finished fourth in the 100m to seal a relay swim but wants to reignite his individual career and with the third-fastest qualifying time behind Gold Coasters James Roberts and Cameron McEvoy, will be out to impress in the one-lap dash.
McEvoy finished just ahead of Magnussen in the 100m.