How he smashed his personal best and the national record
Schooling rewrote Singapore’s history with a stunning performance in the pool on Friday morning (Aug 12) making him the first Singaporean male to make an Olympics swimming final.
This is how he managed to break the national record and achieve a new personal best.
On his race, Schooling said: “I feel fine. A little short on the stroke but that doesn’t really matter that much”.
The Singaporean swimmer has his eye on the ultimate prize.
He said: “I don’t care if I break the world record but if I get silver or bronze, I still lose. It’s all about winning (the gold medal)”.
The final 8
Here’s the final line-up. Click the filters to sort by height, weight, age, personal best times and semi-final time.
Although Schooling is the fastest man in the 100m fly this year, it’s still his idol Phelps who holds the current world (49.82sec) and Olympic record (50.58sec).
Singapore’s national assistant swimming coach Gary Tan said Schooling has what it takes to beat the big names he’s up against on Saturday morning (Aug 13).
He said: “If Phelps is coming next to him, he should focus on himself without thinking of anyone else.
“Phelps does have good finishing, he's having a heavy schedule which is taking a toll on his body but you still can't rule him out.
“Joseph should still focus on his own swim. He did beat Phelps in his heat.”
How Schooling’s personal best compares
Schooling’s new personal best of 50.83sec would have landed him gold in London 2012 and a bronze in Beijing 2008.
Yet, the Singaporean has the potential to go even faster - between 50.13 and 50.25sec, according to converted times from his 100m fly swim at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) meet in February 2016.
Singapore’s history has been rewritten - he is the first Singaporean man to make it to an Olympic swimming final and is just one race away from a podium finish (and, maybe even a gold!)
Good luck, Joseph Schooling!
