Canadian Maggie Mac Neil raced to a silver medal in the women’s 100-metre butterfly at the World Aquatics Championships on Monday in Fukuoka, Japan.
Mac Neil, the reigning Olympic champion, finished in 56.45 seconds.
China’s Zhang Yufei rallied over the final 15 metres, capturing the gold medal in 56.12, while American and 2022 world champion Torri Huske earned bronze with a time of 56.61.
Mac Neil, who grew up in London, Ont., was behind the leaders but used a powerful turn and kick at 50 metres to propel into the lead.
Mac Neil looked strong with about 25 remaining, but started to fade a little bit, allowing Zhang the time to touch the wall in first.
“The last 25 [metres] hurt so bad,” Mac Neil admitted to CBC Sports reporter Devin Heroux. “It’s always good to be back on the world stage. Clearly I have work to but I’m exiting [for future competitions]. Hopefully there’s some things to work on for next year. I’m more happy with second place than the time.”
Mac Neil won the 2019 world title in this event Doha, Qatar.
She opted out of the individual events at the world championships in 2022 for mental health reasons, participating only in relays.
“I think it was really important taking the space and being able to be a relay-only swimmer definitely gave me a different perspective on the sport,” she said.
”Being able to come back and get my confidence up and win my first Commonwealth Games gold medal was another really important step for me. So overall I’m really happy with the decisions that I made. And I’m definitely going towards next year now.”
A year culminating in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Maggie Mac Neil wins Canada’s 1st swimming medal at the world championships
The Canadian swimmer led down the stretch but had to settle for silver in the 100-metre butterfly.
The women’s race was a repeat of the final two years ago at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games. The top four finishers in Tokyo were separated by only 14-100ths of a second. That race went to MacNeil, followed by Zhang and Australian swimmer Emma McKeon. Huske was 1-100th behind McKeon and missed out on a medal.
Masse, Wilm advance to 100m backstroke final
Two Canadians will be competing in the women’s 100 backstroke final on Tuesday.
Kylie Masse and Ingrid Wilm both advanced with strong performances in the semifinals.
Masse, 27, of Lasalle, Ont., finished fourth fastest in 59.06. Calgary’s Wilm, 25, managed to qualify in sixth in 59.35.
”I’m looking forward to racing tomorrow,” said Masse. ”It’s an incredible field and I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
Masse has had a decorated swimming career. A four-time Olympic medallist, Masse is a three-time world champion, including gold medals in the event in 2017 and 2019.
American Regan Smith posted the day’s fastest time of 58.33.
“I’m just excited to have earned a spot,” said Wilm. “I just feel lucky that I get the chance this year. I don’t want to jinx myself but I’m just taking it step by step and I’ll do what I can tomorrow night.”
Masse says Mac Neil’s medal is just what the doctor ordered for the Canadian team.
“It’s always amazing to see a Canadian medal,” Masse said. ”It’s even a greater inspiration to be her friend and have watched her progress through a number of years continuing to achieve medal podiums and great successes in the sport.”
Masse and Wilm will swim in the final at 7:51 a.m. ET, which will be available live on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports app and CBC Gem.
In water polo, the Canadian women failed in their bid to reach the semifinals, losing 17-10 to the Netherlands.
World Aquatics Championships: Swimming finals – Day 2
Watch the best swimmers on the planet compete at the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan.
Another gold for China
Qin Haiyang roared to victory in the men’s 100 breaststroke.
Qin set the second-fastest time in history behind Britain’s world record holder Adam Peaty, finishing in 57.69, with a three-way tie for the silver as Nicolo Martinenghi, Arno Kamminga and Nic Fink were all locked on 58.72.
After topping all other swimmers by more than one second in the semifinals, Qin was never challenged in the final.
The men’s race was partly defined by who did not compete. Peaty, a two-time Olympic champion and world-record holder from Britain, is taking a break and is not swimming in Japan. He has said in interviews he’s taking time away for “mental health issues.”
Peaty is one of the most dominant swimmers in his discipline and holds 19 of the top 20 times in the 100 breaststroke. His record is 56.88.
U.S. rules women’s 200m medley
American swimmers Kate Douglass and Alex Walsh, college teammates at the University of Virginia, finished 1-2 in the women’s 200 medley, with Yu Yiting of China in third.
Douglass trailed until the final 50 when she overtook Walsh to win the gold medal in 2:07.17. Walsh picked up the silver in 2:07.97, while Yu took the bronze in 2:08.74.
The top-two finish by Douglass and Walsh marked the first time the American women had achieved the feat at the worlds.
Toronto’s Summer McIntosh would have been a strong favourite in the event but elected not to swim it because of a scheduling conflict.
The 16-year-old, who swam to a Canadian record 2:06.89 in March, finished a disappointing fourth in the 400 free on Sunday. and lost her world record to Ariarne Titmus of Australia. McIntosh already holds the 400 medley mark, set earlier this year at 4:25.87.
Thomas Ceccon of Italy won the men’s 50 butterfly, which is not an Olympic event, in 22.68. He finished ahead of Diogo Matos Ribeiro of Portugal in 22.80 and Maxime Grousset of France in 22.82.
Many of the men’s butterfly events are missing top contenders, including Caeleb Dressel of the United States and Kristof Milak of Hungary. Dressel failed to make the team after taking a long break and Malik said he was not in shape, mentally or physically, to compete.
NEW YORK – Toronto Blue Jays reliever Chad Green and Canadian slugger Tyler O’Neill of the Boston Red Sox were named finalists for the Major League Baseball Players’ Association’s American League comeback player award on Monday.
Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet was the other nominee.
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. were named player of the year finalists.
The award winners, selected via player voting, will be named Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series.
Green, who missed most of the 2022 and ’23 seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery, was a high-leverage option for the Blue Jays this past season and filled in at closer over the second half of the campaign.
The right-hander converted his first 16 save opportunities and finished the year with a 4-6 record, 17 saves and a 3.21 earned-run average over 53 appearances.
O’Neill, a native of Burnaby, B.C., also endured back-to-back injury-plagued seasons in ’22 and ’23.
After being traded to the Red Sox in the off-season, O’Neill set an MLB record by hitting a homer in his fifth straight Opening Day. He finished with 31 homers on the year and had an OPS of .847.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
NEW YORK – Florida Panthers centre Sam Reinhart was named NHL first star of the week on Monday after leading all players with nine points over four games last week.
Reinhart had four goals, five assists and a plus-seven rating to help the Stanley Cup champions post a 3-0-1 record on the week and move into first place in the Atlantic Division.
New York Rangers left-winger Artemi Panarin took the second star and Minnesota Wild goaltenderFilip Gustavsson was the third star.
Panarin had eight points (4-4) over three games.
Gustavsson became the 15th goalie in NHL history to score a goal and had a 1.00 goals-against average and .962 save percentage over a pair of victories.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Deshaun Watson won’t finish the season as Cleveland’s starting quarterback for the second straight year.
He’s injured again, and the Browns have new problems.
Watson ruptured his right Achilles tendon in the first half of Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati, collapsing as he began to run and leading some Browns fans to cheer while the divisive QB laid on the ground writhing in pain.
The team feared Watson’s year was over and tests done Monday confirmed the rupture. The Browns said Watson will have surgery and miss the rest of the season but “a full recovery is expected.”
It’s the second significant injury in two seasons for Watson, who broke the glenoid (socket) bone in his throwing shoulder last year after just six starts.
The 29-year-old went down Sunday without being touched on a draw play late in the first half. His right leg buckled and Watson crumpled to the turf. TV replays showed his calf rippling, consistent with an Achilles injury.
He immediately put his hands on his helmet, clearly aware of the severity of an injury similar to the one Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers sustained last year.
As he was being assisted by the team’s medical staff and backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson grabbed a ball to begin warming up, there was some derisive cheers and boos from the stands in Huntington Bank Field.
Cleveland fans have been split over Watson, who has been accused of being sexually inappropriate with women.
The reaction didn’t sit well with several Watson’s teammates, including star end Myles Garrett, the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, who was appalled by the fans’ behavior.
“We should be ashamed of ourselves as Browns and as fans to boo anyone and their downfall. To be season-altering, career-altering injury,” Garrett said. “Man’s not perfect. He doesn’t need to be. None of us are expected to be perfect. Can’t judge him for what he does off the field or on the field because I can’t throw stones for my glass house.
“Ultimately everyone’s human and they’re disappointed just like we are, but we have to be better than that as people. There’s levels to this. At the end of the day, it’s just a game and you don’t boo anybody being injured and you don’t celebrate anyone’s downfall.”
Backup quarterback Jameis Winston also admonished the uncomfortable celebration.
“I am very upset with the reaction to a man that has had the world against him for the past four years, and he put his body and life on the line for this city every single day,” he said. “The way I was raised, I will never pull on a man when he’s down, but I will be the person to lift him up.
“I know you love this game. When I first got here, I knew these were some amazing fans, but Deshaun was treated badly and now he has to overcome another obstacle. So I’m going to support him, I’m going to lift him up and I’m going to be there for him.”
The injury is yet another twist in Watson’s tumultuous time with the Browns.
Cleveland traded three first-round draft picks and five overall to Houston in 2022 to get him, with owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam approving the team giving Watson a fully guaranteed, five-year $230 million contract.
With a solid roster, the Browns were desperate to find a QB who could help them compete against the top AFC teams.
The Browns had moved on from Baker Mayfield despite drafting him No. 1 overall in 2018 and making the playoffs two seasons later.
But Watson has not played up to expectations — fans have been pushing for him to be benched this season — and Cleveland’s move to get him has been labeled an abject failure with the team still on the hook to pay him $46 million in each of the next two seasons.
Watson’s arrival in Cleveland also came amid accusations by more than two dozen women of sexual assault and harassment during massage therapy sessions while he played for the Texans. Two grand juries declined to indict him and he has settled civil lawsuits in all but one of the cases.
Watson was suspended by the NFL for his first 11 games and fined $5 million for violating the league’s personal conduct policy before he took his first snap with the Browns. The long layoff — he sat out the 2021 season in a contract dispute — led to struggles once he got on the field, and Watson made just six starts last season before hurting his shoulder.
Cleveland signed veteran Joe Flacco, who went 4-1 as a starter and led the Browns to the playoffs.
Before Watson got hurt this year, he didn’t play much better. He was one of the league’s lowest-rated passers for a Cleveland team that hasn’t scored 20 points in a game and is back in search of a franchise QB.
