Matthew Sates in action at the Fina World Cup in Toronto. Picture: Getty Images
Though they raked in another six medals between them, and both swimmers stayed in the hunt, former champions Matthew Sates and Chad le Clos lost some ground during the second leg of the Fina World Cup short-course series in Toronto at the weekend.
Closing out their campaign at the three-day gala in the early hours of Monday morning (SA time), Sates and Le Clos both returned to the podium to keep their title hopes alive.
Sates, the defending champion in the men’s series, earned gold in the 400m freestyle (3:37.52) and 400m individual medley (4:02.65), as well as bronze in the 100m medley (51.87).
After taking the series lead at the opening leg in Berlin the week before, however, 19-year-old Sates was unable to repeat his string of medals, settling for fourth place in the 200m medley (1:52.89) and 200m freestyle (1:42.46) events, narrowly missing out on podium places.
Le Clos, meanwhile, stormed to gold in the 100m butterfly (48.88) and took the runner-up spot in the 50m butterfly (22.45) and 200m butterfly (1:49.78) finals.
Despite bagging eight medals this season (six gold, one silver and one bronze), Sates slipped to third place in the overall men’s standings with 111 points.
He was just a few points behind joint leaders Dylan Carter and American swimmer Nic Fink, who were tied on 114.5.
With six medals (three gold and three silver), Le Clos was also within reach of his fifth World Cup series crown, lying fourth with 110.2 points.
“It’s been a crazy week for me – a huge turning point for me in my career. I’m back,” Le Clos said as he gained momentum after showing a return to form in the annual short-course series.
“You can’t always guarantee a win, but I’m competing and I want to be in the fight. I’m grateful for where I am at.”
In the women’s World Cup series, Beata Nelson of the United States held the lead with 115.6 points.
The third and final leg of the lucrative World Cup series will start in Indianapolis on Thursday.
