SA’s Rebecca Meder continues strong performance in Swimming World Cup series

South Africa’s swimming sensation Rebecca Meder continued her impressive form on the international stage, returning to the podium at the second stop of the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup series in Westmont, Illinois, over the weekend.

The 23-year-old showcased her consistency by adding another medal to her growing collection claiming bronze in the 200m breaststroke on Saturday. Meder touched the wall in 2 minutes 18.88 seconds, finishing behind Olympic champion Kate Douglass, who took gold in 2:14.57, and American Alex Walsh, who edged Meder for silver in 2:18.54.

The New Zealand-based swimmer, who qualified for all her event finals, also placed fifth in the 100m breaststroke with a time of 1:05.35. The race was won in 1:03.14 by Douglass, who also set a world record in the 100m freestyle over the weekend. Ireland’s Mona McSharry took silver in 1:04.18 and American Alex Walsh the bronze in 1:04.45.

After topping the heats in the 200m individual medley, Meder finished fifth in the final with a time of 2:07.60. The event saw Alex Walsh take gold (2:04.44), Anastasia Gorbenko of Israel earn silver (2:04.93), and Britain’s Abbie Wood claim bronze (2:05.73).

Meder also competed in the 100m individual medley, finishing seventh in 58.31 seconds. The race was won by American Gretchen Walsh, who set a World Cup record of 55.77 seconds.

While her times were slightly slower than at the opening leg of the series in Carmel, Meder expressed satisfaction with her overall showing, a performance that placed South Africa 18th on the medal table, thanks to her breaststroke bronze.

“It was another solid weekend of racing. Unfortunately, I started fighting a head cold on Wednesday, but I am grateful that I made finals for all of my races and finished 17th overall for this stop,” said Meder.

“The 200 and 100 breaststroke events are relatively new (I’ve only been racing them internationally for a year), so I am grateful for this experience, where I get to race the world’s best and to learn and grow with every race. I am looking forward to another weekend of racing in Canada,” said Meder. 

Meder will now turn her attention to the final stop of the World Cup series in Toronto, Canada, from 23–25 October, where she heads into the competition ranked 14th overall in the women’s standings.

Her coach, Graham Hill, praised the value of these international races in her development. “Hopefully the race experience she will gain from the three stops will move her to another level when she races at some major competitions like Commonwealth Games and Olympics,” said Hill. 

With steady improvement and a growing medal tally, Rebecca Meder continues to fly the South African flag high on the world stage showing she’s one to watch as the season builds toward next year’s major championships.

IOL Sport