New Zealand has a brand new 200 metre backstroke record for the first time in 12 years.
Kane Follows, 24, "swum the race of his life" yesterday, Swimming New Zealand said in a statement. He hit the Paris Olympic Games qualification time at the national Apollo Projects New Zealand Swimming Championships.
He also broke a 12-year New Zealand record while competing in the 200m backstoke, setting a time of 1:57.13s.
He beat Gareth Kean's time – set at the 2012 national competition – by two-hundredths of a second.
"This has been a grind, I've missed a lot of teams but I've stuck at it, I've given so much to the sport and it feels so good to get this result," Follows said.
"Sport is a lot of ups and downs but it's all worth it for this feeling, I've really enjoyed this week, racing with my mates and this is the most fun I've had in a long time."
His race was 0.37s under the time needed to qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic games.
New Zealand Olympian Lewis Clareburt picked up another national title at the event, winning the men's 200m butterfly in 1:57.06s.
Swimming New Zealand joked that Clareburt's time "was so hot it appeared to set off the fire alarm", resulting in a delay.
More than 180 athletes are competing at the 2024 Championships this week.
The event is the last opportunity for New Zealand's top swimmers to qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
SHARE ME