Thorpedoed: Olympic comeback marooned
IAN THORPE’S rushed comeback bid for a third Olympic Games ended in ignominy yesterday as he crashed out of the morning heats of the 100 metres freestyle at the Australian trials in Adelaide.
The five-times Olympic champion, who also failed to secure a spot in the 200m freestyle earlier in the trials, won his heat but finished a lowly 21st in the timings behind pacesetter and world champion James Magnussen in his last-chance saloon for London.
The 29-year-old’s time of 50.35 seconds was his best since returning to competition in November, but was more than two seconds shy of Magnussen’s mark and left Thorpe well outside the top 16 for the semifinals at the South Australia Aquatic and Leisure Centre.
The headline act at the trials, Thorpe took a long time to exit the pool after his heat, the ninth of 12, and walked into the bowels of the arena to await his fate.
In the end there was little suspense, as almost all the remaining swimmers smashed the 50-second mark to leave the swimmer contemplating his doomed comeback bid little more than a year after announcing his return to the pool to bid for London.
‘‘Thorpie’s been someone I’ve always admired as a swimmer, so it is upsetting for him and the rest
On Friday, Thorpe failed to reach the 200m freestyle final, a result that left a packed crowd stunned and the Australian swimmer hugely disappointed.
The 11-times world champion’s 200m bid was easily his best chance to qualify for London.
While he put on a brave face after that failure, Thorpe conceded he was battling against the odds to break into the top six of the 100, which would have given him a chance of selection for the relay team.
The exit of the meeting’s main attraction also sucked the enthusiasm out of the crowd for the remaining events.
Samantha Hamill qualified fastest into the semifinals of the 200m butterfly ahead of twiceOlympic medley relay champion Jessicah Schipper, while Olympic silver medallist Brenton Rickard set the pace for the semifinals of the 200m breaststroke.