MCEVOY’S RIO REDEMPTION

HIS 2016 Olympic Games hopes didn’t go to plan but Gold Coast junior Cameron McEvoy can tonight start his path to righting that wrong. The 23-year-old will take to the pool for the 100m freestyle at Budapest’s world championships.

THINGS might have been different for Cameron McEvoy at the Rio Olympics if he had been the chaser rather than the target in the 100m freestyle.

Now the Gold Coast junior will get the chance to find out.

American Caeleb Dressel made every other 100m contender an underdog for the world title on Sunday, when he led off the US relay in 47.26 sec, significantly faster than any other sprinter in the world has swum in the past year.

Of those gathered in Budapest, only McEvoy has gone faster, but not since he set the fastest time in history in a textile swimsuit, 47.04 sec, at last year’s Olympic trials.

That performance made McEvoy a marked man at the Rio Olympics and he did not handle the situation well, fading to seventh in the final.

But now Dressel will have to bear that load this week and McEvoy is happy to pass it on.

“He’s the clear favourite now,’’ McEvoy said after the relay final.

“That puts him in the box seat and it’s exciting now. It going to make it a chase for what he can go and we can go.’’

McEvoy’s best this year is his 47.91 sec to win the national title in April but he has put in another solid preparation since then and came to Budapest confident he could contend.

“In 2013 I was fourth, in 2015 I was second, now the only improvement is to go out and get that title,’’ he said.

“In 2013 I was 0.17 sec from winning, in 2015 I was 0.12 sec from winning, so that’s two world titles I have missed in the space of 0.29 sec.

“Coming out with the world title would be really nice for me mentally.’’ If Dressel does not come back to the pack in the individual event, then McEvoy is the only man in the field with the proven ability to rise to that standard.

Following the withdrawal of Olympic champion Kyle Chalmers from the team to have heart surgery, fellow 18year-old Jack Cartwright was promoted into the individual event and he also has the potential to do some damage.

He recorded a split of 47.51 sec in the sprint relay heats and backed that up with a personal best of 48.34 sec leading off the relay in the final, which suggests he too is a contender.

“It was good experience leading off and to go a PB, I couldn’t be happier,’’ he said after the relay. “I’m looking forward to that individual and seeing what I can do.”