Current:Home > ScamsUS swimmer Luke Hobson takes bronze in 200-meter freestyle 'dogfight'-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
US swimmer Luke Hobson takes bronze in 200-meter freestyle 'dogfight'
View Date:2025-01-11 15:30:02
Editor's note: Keep up with all of the Olympics action here.
NANTERRE, France – The United States wins so many swimming medals in each Olympics, a bronze medal can feel like a drop in the bucket compared to the others.
But there’s nothing like your first medal.
Luke Hobson, 21, got a taste of that Monday night at La Defense Arena. He lost, barely. But he won big, too. Hobson was beaten by only 0.07 seconds in a thrilling and youthful 200-meter freestyle final, finishing third behind 19-year-old gold medalist David Popovici of Romania and 21-year-old silver medalist Matthew Richards of Great Britain.
“It was a pure dogfight,” Popovici said. “We all fought until the last stroke with every last atom in our bodies. Today this was the result. It could have just as easily been the other way around. This is just the start. We're going to have our chances to race again."
2024 Olympic medals: Who is leading the medal count? Follow along as we track the medals for every sport.
How close was this race throughout? After the first 50 meters, Hobson was in last place.
Less than a second, however, separated him from the leader. Gradually, Hobson gained ground, going from seventh to fourth, and then in the final 50, it was anyone's gold to grab.
Looked for a flash like Hobson might win it, too.
Nonetheless, Hobson was pleased when he looked at the scoreboard to see he'd touched just behind Popovici and only 0.02 behind Richards.
“The field from what I could tell was all bunched together pretty tight,” said Hobson, a 12-time All-American at the University of Texas who hails from Reno, Nevada. “So I kind of thought to myself, ‘Just be patient. Wait to strike.’ Coming home the last 50, I think we were all giving it all we had. Years of hard work go into this, and I think a lot of that paid off for me in the last 50. …
“In a race as tight as that, just happy to end up on the podium.”
There could be more in this Olympics for Hobson, who is expected to swim in the 4x200 relay.
“I was expecting to be within striking distance of the podium,” he said. “… Really happy I got my first medal. Just a feeling of excitement. I'm super happy with it."
veryGood! (719)
Related
- Georgia's humbling loss to Mississippi leads college football winners and losers for Week 11
- How smart financial planning can save you thousands of dollars when things go awry
- 'Back at square one': Research shows the folly of cashing out of 401(k) when leaving a job
- Plane crashes at Thunder Over Michigan air show; 2 people parachute from jet
- How Leonardo DiCaprio Celebrated His 50th Birthday
- Where Billie Eilish and Jesse Rutherford Stand 3 Months After Their Breakup
- Horoscopes Today, August 14, 2023
- 5 people, including a child, are dead after an explosion destroys 3 homes and damages 12 others
- Human head washes ashore on Florida beach, police investigating: reports
- A throng of interfaith leaders to focus on combating authoritarianism at global gathering in Chicago
Ranking
- Minnesota county to pay $3.4M to end lawsuit over detainee’s death
- Miss Universe severs ties with Indonesia after contestants allege they were told to strip
- Norwegian climber says it would have been impossible to carry injured Pakistani porter down snowy K2
- NFL preseason Week 1 winners, losers: Rough debuts for rookie QBs
- Groups seek a new hearing on a Mississippi mail-in ballot lawsuit
- Pennsylvania house explosion: 5 dead, including child, and several nearby homes destroyed
- Ranking SEC quarterbacks in 2023, from Jayden Daniels and Joe Milton to Graham Mertz
- Highest-paid QBs in the NFL: The salaries for the 42 highest paid NFL quarterbacks
Recommendation
-
Certifying this year’s presidential results begins quietly, in contrast to the 2020 election
-
Rescued baby walrus getting round-the-clock cuddles as part of care regimen dies in Alaska
-
Researchers identify a new pack of endangered gray wolves in California
-
Pilot and crew member safely eject before Soviet-era fighter jet crashes at Michigan air show
-
Nevada trial set for ‘Dances with Wolves’ actor in newly-revived sex abuse case
-
Inmate dead after incarceration at Georgia jail under federal investigation
-
At least 20 Syrian soldiers killed in ISIS bus ambush, activists say
-
Beloved 2000s Irish boy band Westlife set to embark on first-ever North American tour