World Para Championships: Australia’s “Magnificent Seven” To Spearhead Dolphins From Manchester To Paris

TO PARIS WITH PASSION: Australia's leading medal winning Benjamin Hance (pictured here with team mate Jake Michel urging the Dolphins to a new world record in the Mixed Medley Relay) has certainly got the power and the passion to lead Australia's Paralympic swim team to next year's Games. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr.

World Para Championships: Australia’s “Magnificent Seven” To Spearhead Dolphins From Manchester To Paris

Australia’s “Magnificent Seven” will spearhead the Para Dolphins along a golden pathway to the 2024 Paralympics in Paris after the team’s best World Championship medal haul in over a decade.

The Australians won nine gold, seven silver and 14 bronze medals for a total of 30 medals – when the seven-day 11^th World Para Swimming Championships concluded in Manchester.

The Dolphins, with head coaches Kate Sparkes and Harley Connolly at the helm alongside Swimming Australia Technical Lead Greg Towle finished sixth on the gold medal count behind Italy (26), Ukraine (20), China (18), Brazil (16) and Great Britain (14) – and ahead of Canada (9-4-6) on the silver medal countback.

And it was a combination of gold medals from seven individuals, a world record breaking relay and 21 swimmers from the 30-strong team all winning medals that saw the Dolphins set up an exciting 12 months to Paris.

Man Para Worlds Bemnjamin Hance Gold Medal

FLY IN FLY OUT: Benjamin Hance has unfinished business in Paris. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr (Swimming Australia)

Defending Paralympic, world champion and world record holder Benjamin Hance (St Andrews, QLD; Ashley Delaney) led the “Magnificent Seven” with four medals – two of them gold as he shows all of his passion along the way.

The 23-year-old from Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, under the expert coaching tuition of Olympic backstroker Ashley Delaney, was Australia’s leading medal winner with individual gold and bronze in the men’s 100m S14 backstroke and 100m butterfly and key roles in the gold medal-winning world record breaking 4x100m Mixed Medley S14 Relay and silver medal-winning 4x100m Freestyle S14 Relay.

Hance saying: “I (certainly) can’t complain…. I just want to continue what I’m doing in the butterfly and backstroke and there is (definitely) unfinished business in the butterfly; since last year’s World’s I’ve done just two 100m butterfly races – one in the morning (in Manchester) and the other in the final. The gold and world record in the relay…was the perfect combination.”

AND there was plenty of support and inspiration from fellow Tokyo golden boy, Rowan Crothers (Yeronga Park, QLD; Kate Sparkes), who achieved the rare feat of defending his 50 and 100m S10 freestyle crowns. Crothers completed the sprint double, winning the 100m in a blistering time of 51.02, in a vintage Crothers swim, leading from start to finish.

Former champion surf ironman Tom Gallagher (Somerset, QLD; Ashley Callus) also finished on the podium a second time and with a personal best time of 52.75 to secure bronze in the 100m after his silver to Crothers in the 50m.

Crothers saying he was happy to come away with a 100 percent win rate.

“It’s pretty awesome and in some ways bittersweet; know I’m capable of so much more and so much better…it’s got me so excited for the next 12 months to get back home and get back into training…and to see if I can break those world records come Paris,” said Crothers.

Alexa Leary 4 Photo Courtesy Delly Carr (Swimmimng NSW)

LIFE CHANGING: Alexa Leary wants “The Big W” in Paris.Photo Courtesy:Delly Carr Swimming NSW.

SEVEN-TIME Paralympic medallist Lakeisha Patterson (USC Spartans, QLD; Harley Connolly), the dual Rio and Tokyo 400m freestyle gold medallist dug deep to win her second individual S9 400m freestyle world title (2019, 2023). Patterson never looked like losing, clocking 4:46.30 for another impressive victory.

WORLD record holder Katja Dedekind (Yeronga Park, QLD; Kate Sparkes) who defended her 50m freestyle gold, adding silver (100m freestyle) and bronze (100m backstroke) storming through the women’s 50m freestyle S13 field to hit the wall first with a time of 27.17, retaining her title as the world champion.

AND her fellow world record holder, Timothy Hodge (ACU Blacktown, NSW; Misha Payne) defended his 200m individual medley title and added silver in the S9 100m butterfly and bronze bin the 100m backstroke with the;

REMARKABLE stories of Alexa Leary (St Hildas, QLD; Jon Bell) who won gold and silver in the 100 and 50m freestyle respectively at her first Para World’s and Ahmed Kelly (Yarra Plenty Waves, VIC; Alex Hirschauer) who won his first gold after 14 years on the Australian team in the 150m SM9 individual medley.

Leary struck gold in the women’s 100m Freestyle S9 with a time of 1:00.24, blitzing the field for the win in an incredible performance following two years of recovery from a life-threatening accident.

The never-say-die Gold Coast-based Sunshine Coaster who fought her way back to life from an induced coma after a near-death bike-riding training accident by the former champion triathlete. She now has her sights on making the Paris Paralympic swim team under astute coach Jon Bell – as she takes Australians along for her inspirational ride – and what a united kick start it has been in Manchester.

Leary knows she can get even better also revealing how she loved the whole experience in Manchester, saying: “I want the ‘big W’; the big win (in Paris) …and I could feel the athletes being with me and we all just had a lot of fun and we all supported each other; that was the biggest thing.

“Some of the others (really inspired me); the fact that (they) are in the water and (they) are swimming…. that was a big inspiration for me.”

And none more than Australia’s own world record-breaking Mixed Relay Team of Hance, Jake Michel (Carina Leagues, QLD; Brian Glass), Paige Leonhardt (USC Spartans, QLD; Harley Connolly) and Madeleine McTernan (All Saints, QLD); Ken Sabotic).

Man Para Worlds 23 Rowan Crothers gold on podium

NOW FOR PARIS 2024: Rowan Crothers chasing world records next year in Paris.. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr Swimming Australia

It was a very satisfying win for Australia as they got payback on old rivals, Great Britain. Last year’s championships saw Australia pipped on the touch by an agonising 0.01 seconds, which gave Great Britain the gold.

This time, the Australian squad of Hance (backstroke), Michel (breaststroke), Leonhardt (butterfly) and relay specialist McTernan (freestyle) made sure there would be no doubt who were the winners, clocking a new world’s best time of 4:07.71, taking almost two seconds off the previous mark.

Hance took it out in the backstroke in 56.94, with Michel completing the breaststroke leg in 1:04.13, Leonhardt taking full advantage of the lead provided by Hance and Michel, finishing her butterfly leg in 1:06.09 with McTernan anchoring the freestyle leg in 1:00.55

McTernan spoke for the team when she said: “It feels amazing to break a world record… that last 25m hurt a lot and I was so happy to get on the wall quickly, especially after last year when we got the silver by 0.01…it was definitely good to redeem ourselves.

“Being a mixed relay there is always girls verses guys so it’s different and it’s fun but I’m stoked ..really proud of the team tonight…especially with these guys…thanks to Paige for holding on…”

MAN PARA 23 Mixed Medley Relay Hance, Michel, Leonhardt, McTernan

MIXED MASTERS: Australia’s world record breaking 4x100m Mixed Medley Relay gold medallists (L-R)_ Benjamin Hance, Jake Michel, Paige Leonhardt and Madeleine McTernan. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr Swimming Australia.

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