Yard sales in philadelphia Morgan breaks British record to reach Olympics

Oliver Morgan capped a remarkable rise by breaking the British 100m backstroke record to qualify for the Paris Olympics.

Morgan, 20, was not on the radar at the elite level until he won three titles at the British Championships last year.

He defended his 100m crown on Wednesday in a time of 52.70 seconds to better Liam Tancock’s record from 2009.

“If you asked me two years ago if I would be in this position I’d have said there’s no way,” Morgan said.

“I can’t put it into words.”

Elsewhere, 14-year-old Amelie Blocksidge defended her 1500m freestyle title but her effort of 16 minutes 13.39 at London Aquatics Centre was outside the Olympic qualification time.

Scotland’s Kathleen Dawson, a relay gold medallist from the Tokyo Games, did qualify for Paris by winning the 100m backstroke after three years dogged by injury.

Alice Tai impressively won a hotly-contested 100m Para-backstroke event to put herself in a strong position for qualification for the Paralympics.

Morgan, from Ludlow, did not start competing nationally until the age of 16, with his rise beginning after he began to take the sport more seriously while training at the University of Birmingham.

“It proves you don’t have to be there as a youngster,” he said. “I did what I enjoyed when I was young. I played football and mountain biked.

“We didn’t have the facilities [at Ludlow compared to major swimming centres] and the pool time. You have to adapt.”

Morgan went under 53 seconds for the first time in the morning heats with a time of 52.87 and bettered that in a stacked final.

Jonathon Marshall was also under the Olympic qualification time of 52.73 but had to settle for second, although that should be enough for him to qualify for the Games, while Tokyo bronze medallist Luke Greenbank finished third.

Dawson won gold in the mixed 4x100m medley relay in Tokyo while competing with a back injury.

That turned out to be a bulging disc which caused sciatica and in the period since she has “questioned whether I wanted to be in this sport any more”.

Her time of 59.81 in the heats was her first time under 60 seconds since 2021 and a 59.74 in the final secured her Olympic return.

“I am so unbelievably grateful for the people who have got me back to this point,” she said. “It has been a big test of my mental character. There have been a lot of times I could have chucked it in.”

Tai competed at the Rio Paralympics in 2016 but missed Tokyo because of injury. Since then she has had her right leg amputated to improve her quality of life.

She is targeting five events at the Paralympics with Wednesday’s backstroke win her first event of these championships, back at the venue where she won six world titles in 2019.

“In the pool I am proud of myself but outside of the pool this is the first time in my life since my amputation that I have had my independence,” she said.

“It [her amputation] was a big decision to make and I am proud I went through with it. I am the happiest I have been outside of the pool.”

Poppy Maskill finished second and Olivia Newman-Baronius third and they, like fourth-placed Megan Neave and fifth-placed Georgia Sheffield, also made the Paralympic nomination time in the S14 category to put themselves in contention for the Games.

Teenager Blocksidge looks to be one of the future stars of British swimming having successfully defended the title she won on her 14th birthday last year.

She required a new personal best to make the Olympic time of 16 minutes 01.95 – her own best stands at 16:10.04 – but she finished just over 11 seconds adrift.

Elsewhere, Stephen Clegg won the men’s 100m Para-backstroke title and finished well inside the Paralympic time.

Kara Hanlon won the women’s 200m breaststroke and Joshua Gammon the men’s 200m butterfly but both were outside of the Olympic marks.