OWN CORRESPONDENT, Kuala Lumpur | Tuesday 10.00pm.
DEAF Durbanite Terence Parkin sliced more than two seconds off his national record, but just missed a Commonwealth medal, in the men’s 200m breaststroke in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday night. Julia Russell finished fourth in the women’s 100m breaststroke in a time of 1min 10,47 seconds.
Parkin clocked 2:15,30 to finish in fourth spot, less than a second behind third-placed Adam White of England (2:14,44). Australians Simon Cowley (2:13,13) and Ryan Scott (2:13,20) were first and second.
The 18-year-old South African, who knocked some 4-1/2 seconds off his national record in the 400m individual medley at the weekend, was third going into the first turn. He had slipped to fifth after the first 100m but worked his way to fourth at the three-quarter mark. His last medal chance comes in the 200m IM on Thursday.
Russell was fourth the entire way and was in with a chance until the final 15m when third-placed Canadian Lauren van Oosten (1:09,11) pulled ahead. Western Province schoolgirl Renate du Plessis broke her SA record for the 100m butterfly where she ended sixth in 1:01,90. The 17-year-old’s previous mark was 1:02,01.
SA champion Ryk Neethling finished fifth in the 400m freestyle where Australia’s world class field of Ian Thorpe, Grant Hacket and Daniel Kowalski took all the medals. Neethling, who was in fourth spot for the first 340m, swam a 3:51,41 — less than half a second outside his personal best. Thorpe cruised home in a Commonwealth record time of 3:44,35. Joseph Loader of New Zealand was fourth in 3:49,11.
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