He Sibiao Settles for Silver in Astana 200m Freestyle After Three-Leg Gold Streak
On.cc · 2 SOURCESabout 4 hours ago2 MIN
Summary
Hong Kong's "super fish" Siobhan Haughey claimed a hard-fought silver medal in the women's 200m freestyle at the World Cup Short Pool Swimming meet in Astana, Kazakhstan on October 15-16. Despite persistent arm pain and nerve issues in her fingers that had forced her to withdraw from multiple events earlier in the tour, the 28-year-old delivered a strong performance, clocking 1 minute 50.87 seconds in the final—her best time across all three legs of the competition. She finished 0.64 seconds behind Dutch star Steenberghe, who broke the European record with 1:50.23, the third fastest time in history. Haughey had won gold in this event at the first two legs in Baku and Tashkent before settling for silver in Kazakhstan.
Key Points
- Haughey finished second in the final with 1:50.87, her fastest time of the three World Cup legs
- Dutch swimmer Steenberghe won gold in 1:50.23, breaking the European record by 0.64 seconds over Haughey
- Haughey qualified for the final by finishing third overall in the morning preliminaries with 1:56.74
- The final took place at 9:31 PM Hong Kong time on October 15, with Haughey swimming from lane 3
- Haughey previously won gold in Baku (1:51.08) and Tashkent (1:51.02) before claiming silver in Astana
Why It Matters
For Hong Kong, Haughey's silver—despite physical discomfort—demonstrates her remarkable resilience and consistency at the elite level, having medaled in all three World Cup legs this season. Her continued participation and strong results, coming just one week after returning from the Nagoya Asian Games where she won two golds and two silvers, underscore her status as one of the world's top freestyle swimmers heading toward future major competitions.
For Hong Kong, Haughey's silver—despite physical discomfort—demonstrates her remarkable resilience and consistency at the elite level, having medaled in all three World Cup legs this season. Her continued participation and strong results, coming just one week after returning from the Nagoya Asian Games where she won two golds and two silvers, underscore her status as one of the world's top freestyle swimmers heading toward future major competitions.