Canadian swimmer Ilya Kharun clinched his second consecutive gold medal at the World Cup finale in Toronto by triumphing in the men’s 50-meter butterfly final. The Montreal native, who had also won the 200m butterfly the day before, finished with a time of 21.80 seconds, narrowly beating Switzerland’s Noe Ponti, the short-course world record holder, by a mere one one-hundredth of a second. Josh Liendo from Toronto claimed the bronze with a personal best time of 21.91.
Reflecting on his victory, Kharun expressed his elation, stating, “It means a whole lot. I knew it was going to be very close, and I’m just so happy I got it done. I’m just speechless. I saw Ponti’s splashes on the second 25, and I knew it was going to come down to me or him, and I was just hoping that I got it. And you know what, I did.”
The 20-year-old swimmer earned $10,000 US for winning the 50m butterfly at all three World Cup stops, a feat he also accomplished in the 200m fly. Kharun secured fifth place in the Toronto men’s standings and fourth in the overall men’s rankings, bringing his total earnings to $54,500. He kicked off the Toronto meet with a bronze in the 50m freestyle before taking silver in the 100m butterfly later the same day.
Kharun relished the opportunity to compete against Liendo in front of their home fans at the Pan Am Sports Centre, also known as “Canada’s fastest pool.” Liendo, who won three gold medals in Toronto, finished ninth in the overall standings, earning $25,000 in total prize money. The 23-year-old swimmer broke Ponti’s world record in the 100m butterfly with a time of 47.68.
The World Cup event witnessed an impressive display of talent, with five world records being shattered. Australian swimmer Lani Pallister set a new world record in the women’s 800m freestyle, clocking in at 7:54 — over three seconds faster than the previous record held by Katie Ledecky. Pallister was well ahead of the world-record pace throughout the race, finishing ahead of New Zealanders Erika Fairweather and Caitlin Deans. Mary-Sophie Harvey of Trois-Rivières, Que., achieved a personal best time and finished fourth.