Medal in swimming
Waiting Wellbrock wins silver again at the Short Course World Championships
First wait, then celebrate a medal: Florian Wellbrock already knows this procedure. On Saturday, Germany’s top swimmer will be defeated by a local hero.
Germany’s top swimmer Florian Wellbrock won his next medal at the Short Course World Championships in Budapest – and was once again standing at the edge of the pool when silver was certain for him. The 27-year-old only had to admit defeat to Hungarian local hero Zalan Sarkany in the 800 meter freestyle.
Wellbrock swam the course in the Duna Arena in the morning and finished with a time of 7:31.90 minutes. Unlike the Olympics, the event in Budapest does not have a classic final, but rather several heats spread throughout the day. At the Olympic Games in Paris, Wellbrock disappointed in both the pool and the open water.
Similar constellation as over 1500 meters
This time Sarkany (7:30.56) was almost one and a half seconds faster than Wellbrock. “This is a huge surprise for me. A medal was my goal. I wanted to keep going until I die. I didn’t die,” said the celebrated winner with a smile.
The Tunisian Ahmed Jaouadi (7:31.93) was three hundredths of a second slower than Wellbrock and won bronze. Jaouadi won gold in the 1500 meters on Tuesday and, in a similar constellation, replaced the top German swimmer from top spot. Wellbrock’s teammate Sven Schwarz took fourth place. He had also swum in the morning.
dpa