Peaty’s bronze is bittersweet
ADAM PEATY crashed to his first defeat for two years last night but still came out smiling.
Britain’s Olympic, world, European and Commonwealth champion had to settle for 50m breaststroke bronze on day one of the European ShortCourse Championships in Copenhagen.
His personal-best time of 25.70secs was inside the European record of 25.72 set by Russia’s Kirill Prigoda in the semifinals.
But Italy’s Fabio Scozzoli and Prigoda went quicker still to win gold and silver respectively in 25.62 and 25.68.
Peaty, 22, who prefers the 50m long-course events in which he has monopolised the major 50m and 100m titles since 2014, has yet to win an international short-course gold in a 25m pool. His current focus is on next year’s Commonwealth Games.
Peaty’s Olympic silver-winning medley relay team-mate Chris Walker-Hebborn faces a wait before learning whether he has made England’s cut for the Gold Coast Games. He came second to Loughborough University’s Luke Greenbank in the 100m backstroke at the Swim England Championships.
Olympic silver medallist Siobhan-Marie O’Connor failed to add the 100m butterfly to her Commonwealth Games programme as she slumped to fifth.
City of Sheffield’s Jay Lelliott, who survived a brain tumour aged 12, sealed his spot in the England team with a 400m freestyle win.