Alshammar Deserves Some Serious Applause

SOLNA, Sweden, September 6. WITH the return of Dara Torres to the international scene, thanks to a spectacular summer, much of the sprint-free focus featured the 40-year-old American trying to qualify for her fifth Olympic Games. But, there was another veteran who deserves to have her summer highlights, well, highlighted.

Now a 30-year-old, Sweden's Therese Alshammar has made it quite clear that she'll be a major factor next year in Beijing. The Olympic silver medalist in the 50 and 100 freestyles at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Alshammar slightly dropped off form at the Athens Games, finishing fourth in the 50 free. These days, she's swimming as fast as ever.

Earlier this year at the World Championships in Melbourne, Alshammar grabbed gold in the 50-meter butterfly and collected a silver medal in the 50 freestyle. Her year, however, got better after the World Champs, as Alshammar set a world record in the 50 fly (25.46) and posted the second-fastest 50 free time in history, an effort of 24.23.

With the Olympics not far in the future, the sprint-free events are shaping up to be some of the most intriguing on the female side. Aussie Libby Lenton figures to make major noise, and Torres' story will obviously attract significant attention, provided she gets through the United States Trials in Omaha. But, Alshammar deserves as much attention and credit for, at the age of 30, digging deep for her best stuff.

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