Matthew Targett conquers Men’s 50m freestyle gold medal - 2011 Canet En Roussillon
Australian swimmer, Matthew Targett, has claimed the title of the Men’s 50m freestyle event on the initial day of the 2011 Canet En Roussillon.
The championship is a two-day international swimming competition and is the third stop of the 2011 Mare Nostrum Series, which will conclude on July 12, after a last stop at Monaco.
Targett occupied the gold medal of the 50m event in a blistering time of 22.19 seconds. He was 0.30 seconds away from his closest competitor, Roland Schoeman of South Africa. Schoeman followed him on the finishing wall, earning the silver spot on the podium,
with a time of 22.49 seconds. They were followed by Australia’s Cameron Prosser and Evgeny Lagunov of Russia, who touched the wall in a same time of 22.54 seconds, to earn the bronze medal.
Targett won a silver and bronze medal in the 4*100m medley relay and 4*100m freestyle relay categories at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He also won two medals at the 2009 Rome World Championships, including a silver medal in the 50m butterfly and a bronze in
the 4*100m medley relay.
The champion had a quick start to the event, which gave him a slight lead over his fellow swimmers. His fast arm-strokes enabled him to sustain his lead in the first-half, where he kept his closest swimmer, Schoeman, at bay. In the second-half, Targett cruised
his way to the finishing wall, enhancing his lead to 0.30 seconds and touched the wall in 22.19 seconds for the gold medal.
Kyle Richardson of Australia and Takuro Fujii of Japan followed them on the finishing wall, for the fifth and sixth position, with timings of 22.59 and 22.61 seconds, respectively. Australia’s Kenneth To and SK Neptun’s Peter Stymne completed their swims
for the seventh and eighth fastest spots, posting in 22.64 and 22.74 seconds, respectively.
The swimmers were awarded medals after their astounding swims, while Targett expressed happiness on his victory. He said that he will improve his timings to exceed the expectations of his fans in future events.
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