STEPHANIE RICE picked up her third gold medal at the Beijing Olympics on Thursday when she helped the Australian women’s 4x200m freestyle relay team wipe out the world record by nearly six seconds.
Rice teamed up with Bronte Barratt, Kylie Palmer and Linda Mackenzie to demolish the old record and claim the gold in seven minutes 44.31 seconds. The previous record, set by the United States, was 7:50.09.
China took silver while the United States won the bronze as the first five teams all went under the old world record.
Although Australia were not expected to win the gold the victory was not a total surprise after the impressive women’s team won gold medals on each of the four previous days.
Rice, who won gold in the 200m and 400m individual medleys, capped a remarkable first Olympics with her third world record of the Games.
“It’s so exciting, it’s me and Bronte’s last swim, and what a great way to finish, with a gold medal and a world record,” said Rice. “For us to break the record by so now is amazing.”
The United States went into the final as overwhelming favorites after setting the previous record at last year’s world championships in Melbourne but never rose any higher than third.
The bronze kept Natalie Coughlin on course to win six medals in Beijing after her gold in the 100m backstroke, silver in the 4x100m freestyle and bronze in the 200m individual medley.
She has already qualified for Friday’s 100m freestyle final and will lead off the U.S. medley relay Sunday.(SD-Agencies)
Swimmers from the Australian team celebrate during the final of women¡¯s 4x200m freestyle relay at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in the National Aquatics Center, also known as the Water Cube in Beijing on Thursday. SD-Agencies