Canadian Brent Hayden Wins Gold at World Aquatic Championships

Mar 29, 12:06 PM

Current Headlines: MELBOURNE, Australia (CP) - It was a record day in the pool for Canadian swimmer Brent Hayden on Thursday.

The 23-year-old from Mission, B.C., won Canada's first swimming gold in the pool at the World Aquatic Championships in 21 years. Hayden and defending champion Filippo Magnini of Italy shared the gold in the men's 100 freestyle, touching the wall together in 48.43 seconds after a furious two-lap sprint.

It marked the world championships' first-ever dead heat for gold, although it is not unprecedented in the sport. Americans Gary Hall and Anthony Ervin posted the same time in winning the 50-metre freestyle at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Hayden didn't immediately realize he'd tied for gold.

When they touched, all eight swimmers turned to the scoreboard to check the results. The first five finishers were within a tenth of a second of each other.

"First thing I saw was the big No. 1 beside Magnini's name and my heart sort of sank a little bit," Hayden said. "But then immediately I saw that my name was up too and it also had the No. 1. Right there it just sort of all hit me."

Said Magnini: "First I saw that I was the first and I felt happy. When I saw there was another name, my happiness remained."

The time was a Canadian record, one of four on the day. Hayden held the previous mark of 48.59.

Australia's Eamon Sullivan was third in 48.43.

"It feels absolutely amazing," Hayden told a conference call with Canadian reporters. "I really had no idea what was going to come out of this event, but deep down you always hope for a gold medal. To actually see that dream become a reality is absolutely incredible and I really can't ask for any more right now. Because my life really right now seems perfect."

A thrilled Hayden threw his arms in the air to celebrate. He and Magnini climbed out of the pool and embraced each other before the Italian jokingly flexed his muscles.

The duo shared top spot on the medals podium, with the Canadian anthem playing first, followed by the Italian one, which got the crowd clapping along.

Canada's last swimming gold at the World Aquatic Championships was in 1994 when Greg Streppel won the men's 25-kilometre open water race. The drought in the pool stretches back to 1986 when Victor Davis won the 100 breaststroke in Madrid. That victory came after British swimmer Adrian Morehouse was disqualified, moving Davis to the top of the podium.

Davis also won the 200 breaststroke at the 1982 world championships in Ecuador.

Canada's only other swimming gold came at the first world championships in 1973 in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, where Bruce Robertson won the 100 butterfly.

"It's a pretty special day," said Canadian head coach Tom Johnson, who has been working with Hayden for almost six years. "It doesn't happen that often."

Canada had earlier won three silver medals, all in diving.

Hayden was ranked second in the world in the 100 coming into the championships after winning the Pan Pacific Championship last year. He was fourth in the 100 freestyle at the last world championships in Montreal.

He dedicated the win to his late grandfather, who died shortly before Hayden left for Australia.

"I told myself I would win a medal for him," Hayden said.

A coach from the Virgin Islands lent him a cellphone to call his parents back home from the pool deck.

Hayden said he did not mind sharing the win.

"I still have my gold medal," he said. "That's all that matters."

The Canadian swimmer shaved his head two weeks before the meet, mainly because of he couldn't get the right sponsor's name on his swim cap.

He sports a tattoo saying Friends Forever in Chinese, something he did with his best friend after the friend survived a motorcycle accident.

Hayden overcame top-notch competition to win gold here. South Africans Roland Schoeman and Ryk Neethling - the silver and bronze medallists at the previous world championships in Montreal - finished seventh and eighth. Two-time Olympic champion Pieter van den Hoogenband was sixth.

In other action Thursday, Brian Johns of Richmond, B.C, was fifth in the 200 individual medley won by American Michael Phelps in world record time.

Phelps won in one minute 54.98 seconds, bettering his old mark of 1:55.84 set in August at the Pan Pacific championships. Johns' time was 1:59.46, just off the Canadian record of 1:59.45 he had set the day before.

Mike Brown of Perth, Ont., was second in his 200 breaststroke semifinal in 2:11.61 to advance to the final, just missing out on a Canadian record.

In women's action, Calgary's Erica Morningstar was second in her 100 freestyle semifinal in 54.08 to make the final. It was a Canadian record, as was her morning swim in the preliminaries.

Audrey Lacroix of Pont Rouge, Que., was fifth in the 200 butterfly final won by Australian Jessicah Schipper. Lacroix's time was 2:07.73, eclipsing the Canadian record of 2:08.12 she had set the day before.

The previous mark of 2:09.64 was set by Jessica Deglau of Vancouver at the 1999 Pan-Am Games.

Johnson says Swimming Canada is on the right track.

"You're seeing the type of Canadian fighting spirit that we look for and that we've come to expect from Canadian swim teams resurfacing and becoming our trademark once again," said Johnson.

The Canadian women's water polo team defeated Spain 9-6 and will now meet Italy for fifth place Saturday.