“I really care about this win because it symbolizes what I went through inside, it’s like a starting point, a confirmation that I can,” said the breaststroke specialist.
Last week she swam second in the 100m final, ahead of only the American King Lilly. But soon the Lithuanian was disqualified for breaking the rules: after the start, she performed two leg movements characteristic of butterfly swimming, although only one is allowed.
Now R. Meilutytė claims that she rushed to the finish line without realizing that her run with L. King in the pool had already lost its meaning.
“I didn’t perceive anything, I didn’t consciously think about anything while swimming. Of course, there were surprises when I saw the board, I really didn’t expect it. your feet stable, pay more attention to detail.
It could always be better, but I’m not disappointed at all. I’m happy with this league and the experience I’ve gained in it,” commented the 25-year-old from Kaunas.
A few days later, she recovered at the mid-distance, setting a new world record (28.37 seconds) in the semifinals and confidently taking gold in the final.
“I didn’t feel any desire to take revenge or anything like that. I think I would have performed the same anyway – I was just well prepared. But that disqualification allowed me to rethink what success is, it reminded me why I’m here, not for the medals , but for the pleasure of swimming.
I shifted gears, I was in the mood to have fun. And that record was not a special surprise, because I had already come close in World Cup races,” R. Meilutytė shared her impressions of her, happy that she flew to Australia earlier and had a few weeks to acclimatize .
The medal and the record brought her 43 thousand. the cash prize from the World Aquatics Federation (World Aquatics, ex FINA) in the amount of US dollars (41,000 euros).
Now R. Meilutytė is waiting for a party with his relatives and next year the selections for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will begin.
This year, the swimmer herself declined Olympic candidate status, indicating she is still unsure whether to compete in the Games. I asked again on Tuesday DelphiR. Meilutytė thought for a moment.
“I don’t know. I don’t put pressure on myself, but I really think about it, I don’t say no. I just don’t feel the need to make a decision now,” explained the London Olympic champion.
We remind you that in the championship held in Melbourne Dan Rapsys she won bronze in the 400 m freestyle final. Halfway through the shorter distance, the 27-year-old from Panevėžys could not keep his position and settled for seventh place.
D. Rapšys earned 10 thousand from “World Aquatics” for his performance in Australia. U.S. dollars.
He also started in the league Andrius Sidlauskaswho failed to reach the semifinals in any of the breaststroke distances.
In the overall championship standings, the Lithuanian national team shared 16th-17th place with Spain. The medals were won by representatives from 23 countries, with US swimmers traditionally garnering the largest tally (18 gold/14 silver/17 bronze).
Second for China (18/2/8), third for Italy (9/7/6). The hosts of the competition, the Australians, remained fourth (6/9/4).
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