Chase Kalisz and Jay Litherland delivered Team USA’s first medals of the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday night, taking the gold and silver, respectively, in the 400 individual medley.
Kalisz established a commanding lead during the breaststroke, the third leg of the demanding race. He finished in 4:09.42, eight-tenths of a second ahead of Litherland.
Brendon Smith of Australia took the bronze, becoming the first Australian to medal in the 400 IM since 1984.
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WATCH HEREAfter the race, Kalisz said, “It means the world. This is the last thing I really wanted to accomplish in my swimming career. It was something that was a dream of mine for as long as I remember. I can’t believe it. I really can’t believe it.”
To his parents via video, he added: “I did it, guys. I really did it.”
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SIGN UP At the 2016 Rio Games, Kalisz took home the silver in this event, one of many once dominated by Michael Phelps. In the preliminaries, Kalisz had the third-fastest time behind Australia’s Smith and New Zealand’s Lewis Clareburt. Litherland had advanced to the final tied for the fifth-fastest time.
Kalisz will also be in action later this week in the 200 IM.
Tokyo Olympics
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