World University Games – Swimming

New Zealand swimmer Lauren Boyle continued her outstanding season with a second gold medal on day two of finals at the World University Games in Shenzhen, China.

The 23 year old took out the 400m freestyle in a closely fought battle, after winning the 800m freestyle on the opening night.

It sparked another excellent night in the pool for the New Zealanders, with a double medal haul in the 200m backstroke where outstanding Wellington teenager Gareth Kean scored gold and Auckland’s Kurt Bassett dead-heated for the bronze.

That takes the New Zealand swim team to six medals with four golds and two bronze in just two days of competition.

Boyle became the first New Zealander in any sport to win two gold medals at the Summer Universiade, but she had to work hard for victory tonight against Spain’s Melania Costa Schmid, who had beaten the kiwi in the 200m freestyle and was a fellow finalist in the 400m at the recent world championships in Shanghai.

The SNZ High Performance Centre swimmer started conservatively, finally hitting the lead at the 300m mark, and she whizzed home in a slick 62.35s to win in 4:07.78. This was a touch outside the national record Boyle set at the trials in April which she broke at Shanghai.

Kean, 19, from the Capital club in Wellington, showed his class to win the 100m backstroke, holding off a fierce challenge from Spaniard Juan Rando Galvez. The kiwi, a finalist in the event in Shanghai, led at the turn from compatriot Bassett but had to withstand a storming finish from Galvez to win in 54.71, just over a second outside the national record he set in the world championship final.

Bassett, who was off-colour in his favoured 200m backstroke on the opening day, qualified fourth and swum aggressively in the final, turning second and lunging at the finish to grab a dead-heat for third with Italy’s Sebastiano Ranfagni.

Earlier Auckland’s Neilsen Varoy (Roskill Magic) finished seventh in the final of the 50m butterfly in 24.37, a touch outside his personal best in the heat.

Tash Hind, from Swimming New Zealand’s High Performance Centre, finished strongly for sixth in the 100m freestyle. Hind (Capital) was seventh at the 50m mark but was strong coming home to clock 55.77 for sixth in virtually the same time as in Shanghai, and just 39/100ths of a second from a medal.

All the New Zealand medallists are back in action on day three. Boyle is joined by Hind in the 200m freestyle, Kean and Bassett compete in the 50m backstroke while Glenn Snyders with Nick Ferrif race the 100m breaststroke. Matt Stanley and Carl O’Donnell compete in the 100m freestyle, Kelsey Moffatt and Samantha Lucie-Smith are set for heats of the gruelling 400m individual medley while New Zealand will compete in the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay.

CAPTION: New Zealand swimmer Lauren Boyle on her way to her second gold medal at the World University Games in Shenzhen, China.