Mollie O’Callaghan dethrones Ariarne Titmus in epic Olympic showdown

• Reigning 200m freestyle champion pipped to gold in Paris
• O’Callaghan sets new Olympic record in Australian one-two

Last month, at Australia’s Olympic swim trials in Brisbane, former 200m freestyle world champion Mollie O’Callaghan broke her own world record. There was just one problem – teammate and rival Ariarne Titmus went even faster. O’Callaghan, only 20, just about kept it together on camera in the post-race interview. But once the broadcast was over, the tears flowed.

There were more tears on Monday evening in Paris. Only they were happy tears, tears of jubilation and tears of relief. O’Callaghan may have lost the battle last month, but at a packed La Défense Arena she won the war. In one of the most anticipated encounters of the meet, O’Callaghan got her revenge, winning her first individual Olympic gold in a frenetic four-lap battle with Titmus. It is the first time in 20 years that Australian swimmers have gone one-two at the Olympics, as the pair followed in the footsteps of Ian Thorpe and Grant Hackett.