South Africa’s Tatjana Schoenmaker has set a second Olympic Games record in Tokyo.
The 24-year-old who bettered the Olympic record in the 100 metres breaststroke heats on Sunday before winning the silver medal in the event on Tuesday, was at it again in the 200 metres breaststroke.
She accelerated over the last 50 metres to win her heat in two minutes, 19.16 seconds.
It was just .05 seconds outside the world record mark set eight years ago.
She also qualified fastest for the semi-finals almost three seconds faster than American Lilly King who set the second fastest time.
Letting it sink in. An Olympic record for @TRSchoenmaker in the women’s 200m breaststroke
? @AntonGeyser pic.twitter.com/HahyosE6bF— Team South Africa (@TeamSA2020) July 28, 2021
Slow start
Menwhile, team South Africa has had a slow start to day five of the Olympic Games.
The 2012 gold medallist, Chad le Clos, who qualified third fastest for the 200 metres butterfly final, finished fifth.
Kristof Milak of Hungary won gold in a new Olympic Games record of one minute, 51.25 seconds, with Tomoru Honda of Japan in second place almost two and a half seconds behind the Hungarian. Italy’s Federico Burdisso won the bronze medal.
Cyclist Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio improved on her performance in the women’s road race by finishing eighth in the individual time trial.
Annemiek van Vleuten of the Netherlands won gold, finishing almost a minute clear of her nearest rival.
And the South African sevens rugby team beat Australia 22-19 and will play off for fifth and sixth place in the men’s event.
