Paris Olympics, Day 1 Prelims: Caspar Corbeau Heads 100m Breaststroke Ahead Of Adam Peaty; Qin Haiyang Ninth
Adam Peaty safely navigated the 100m breaststroke as he seeks to make more history although it was Caspar Corbeau who headed the prelims at La Defense Arena.
Peaty will join Michael Phelps in an exclusive two-man club if he was to win his third straight title and secure the three-peat.
The 23-time Olympic champion won three straight titles in the 100 fly in 2004-2008-2012 although regardless of what happens in the French capital, he’ll continue to stand alone with four consecutive Olympic golds in the 200IM between 2004 and 2016.
Come Sunday 28 July and Peaty will write yet another line in the history books should he add to his crowns from Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2021.
- World Record: Adam Peaty, GBR – 56.88 (2019)
- Olympic Record: Adam Peaty, GBR – 57.13 (2016)
- Tokyo Olympic Champion: Adam Peaty, GBR – 57.37
However, standing in his way will be the formidable presence of Qin Haiyang.
The Chinese athlete won an historic breaststroke treble at the 2023 World Championships where he posted 57.69 to become number two all-time, eclipsing Arno Kamminga’s 57.80 from Tokyo 2021 in the process.
He went on to replicate the clean sweep at the World University Games and then at the Asian Games before sustaining his form on the World Cup tour, going 57.69 once more at the Berlin leg.
However, it was Corbeau who set the pace in 59.04 in the first of the seeded prelims with Peaty second swiftest into the semis in 59.18.
Ilya Shymanovich – the athlete from Belarus competing in Paris as a neutral athlete – was third through in 59.25 with Arno Kamminga and Nicolo Martinenghi – Tokyo silver and bronze medallists respectively – both clocking 59.39.
Qin went in the final heat and stopped the clock in 59.58 for ninth place.
Peaty, who went in the penultimate heat, said:
“I saw the scores come and said I don’t really have to push anything too far to have to prove anything. But we’ll see what we get tonight. We can’t win the battle now. We have to win it tomorrow.
“Very, very different, very different (to Tokyo). I was a younger man, a little bit more to prove and a little bit more angry then. So obviously tonight, we’ve got a nice job to do, and that field is a good bit closer. So we’re going to have to be on our A game to make sure get through to that final in a good lane. Otherwise, you know, it’ll be one touch and you’re out.”
Peaty has criticised WADA over the Chinese controversy which saw 23 athletes go without sanction despite testing positive for heart booster TMZ.
He said: “It’s nice to put that behind you and just have a swim. It’s always in the back of your mind as an athlete, you know. You definitely want a fair game, you want to win fair and be around people who do the same and live by the same values. And that’s all I’ll say on that. I think we all know what we’re talking about. But at the same time, you know, we got a job to do. So you can’t let that be a cloud in front of the road. So we’re still on process.”
So too has the five-time Olympic medallist had well-documented mental health issues, the nature of being a pioneer leading to loneliness and a downward spiral that saw him on the verge of quitting “a thousand times”.
He said: “Good. Very good. If anything, too relaxed in the sense of it doesn’t feel like we’re here at the moment. But getting that swim done starts to wake up the mind. And I think that’s just experience where I know I don’t have to spend the energy here. So what we were saying to Mel (coach Mel Marshall) this morning was business, business and business again, and that’s purely it.”
Great Britain teammate James Wilby, through in sixth in 59.40, said of Peaty: “I love racing Adam. It’s one of those ones that, we wear the same flag and we’re competing against each other, but at the end of the day, competition is a good thing. Clean, fair competition is what we want. And racing against Adam is a lot of fun. We’ve done it numerous times over the years, been on the podium together. … get me close to him, let me have a race with him and it’s all fun and games.”
Corbeau, who sliced 0.14 from his PB, has more silverware in the 200 breast including 2024 world silver and 2023 European short-course gold.
He trains in Amsterdam alongside Kamminga, Tes Schouten and Kenzo Simons, the quartet overseen by Mark Faber.
He said: “I know I can go so much faster still. It was a morning swim, a bit rough the last 10 meters. If I take some more caffeine and bicarbonate, I know I can be faster tonight.
“I know I’ve got the 58. I’ve known I’ve had it the whole time. I just have to go out and do it, and the semifinals is the perfect time to do it.”
Kamminga, competing at his second Olympics three years after double silver on his debut, added: “It’s been amazing. I have to get used to a full crowd – it’s been years since I’ve seen so many people in the pool, but it’s amazing. The vibe is there, making a lot of noise, and I love it.”
Looking to training mate Corbeau, he said: “We’ve been on a roll this year, and he’s having an amazing season. It’s nice for him to start us off like this.”