Swimming: Another dud for ‘Thorpedo’ in Tokyo

Australian swimming great flopped again in his comeback bid, failing to reach the final of the 100 metres freestyle.

TOKYO: Australian swimming great Ian Thorpe flopped again in his comeback bid, failing to reach the final of the 100 metres freestyle at a World Cup meet in Tokyo. Winner of five Olympic gold medals, Thorpe clocked 49.45 seconds at the Tokyo Tatsumi International Swimming Centre to finish 12th in the heats and miss out on the final. It was Thorpe’s second successive setback in an event he once dominated, having failed to reach the final in Beijing earlier this week. Thorpe, who hopes to qualify for next year’s London Olympics, has withdrawn from the heats for the 100-metre individual medley.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 13^th, 2011.