Sensational Siobhan Haughey storms to second gold at short-course World Championships, beating Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom in 100m freestyle final
- Hong Kong’s double Olympic silver medallist adds the 100m freestyle world title to the 200m crown she won on Thursday in Abu Dhabi
- Haughey’s coach Michael Fasching says her success is the result of seven years of hard graft, sacrifice and positive thinking
Siobhan Haughey created more swimming history for Hong Kong on Saturday when she won her second gold medal at the short-course World Championships in Abu Dhabi.
Two days after setting Hong Kong’s first-ever world record in swimming in the women’s 200 metres final, Haughey once again produced a sensational performance to beat Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom – whose record in the 200m freestyle she broke on Thursday.
Although there was no world record on Saturday, double Olympic silver medallist Haughey still won comfortably in 50.98 seconds, a championship record, with Sjostrom second in 51.31 and American Abbey Weitzeil third in 51.64. Haughey’s personal best for the 100m freestyle is 50.79. The world record of 50.25 is held by Australian Cate Campbell.
Haughey’s long-time coach Michael Fasching from Harry Wright International said 2021 is the culmination of seven years of hard graft, with the 24-year-old also winning two silver medals in the same events – long-course – at the Tokyo Games.
“As a large percentage of Hong Kong’s population watched tonight’s historic 100m freestyle race unfold, Siobhan Haughey has done it once more,” Fasching told the Post. “Positivity, focus and determination have come out again on top.