Who are the main threats to Hong Kong’s Siobhan Haughey in the world 200m freestyle final?
The defending champion has the fifth-fastest times in the heats and faces several tough opponents – but there are some cards in her favour
Siobhan Haughey was the fifth-fastest swimmer in the women’s 200 metres freestyle heats in Budapest on Sunday, as she prepares to defend her world title crown at the World Aquatics Swimming Championships.
Haughey touched the wall in one minute and 53.76 seconds to qualify for the final, which takes place at 1.02am on Monday, Hong Kong time.
So, what chance does Haughey have of winning her fifth world title, her fourth in the 200m freestyle event?
Haughey’s biggest rival for gold could be Canadian Mary-Sophie Harvey. The 25-year-old, who used to train with Haughey’s coach, Tom Rushton, beat Haughey in Heat 5 and was the second fastest overall, coming home in 1:52.81.
However, the major challenge Harvey poses is that she is famously faster in the second half of her races, whereas Haughey tends to come out quickly and fade towards the end.
In the heats, Haughey was 0.82 seconds faster than Harvey at the 100m mark. When the swimmers turned for the final 25m, Harvey was already 0.26 seconds faster.
