Fran Halsall may be fighting on two fronts at the World Swimming Championships but she didn’t take her foot off the gas as she began the second of those two events.
The 23-year-old qualified out of the 50m freestyle heats in Barcelona as the second fastest behind new 100m world champion Cate Campbell after clocking 24.60seconds.
It promises to be an action packed next session for Halsall in the Palau Sant Jordi pool with the 50m butterfly final coming before those semi-finals in the 50m freestyle.
But Halsall, who set a new British record of 25.69 in the 50m butterfly heats, claims there is every chance of securing GB’s first medal in Barcelona on the penultimate day.
“It’s my second day and it was good in the morning blowing the cobwebs out from the night before and it was a case of getting the job done,” said Halsall.
“Now it is a case of seizing the opportunities and I’m looking forward to it. I came fourth twice at the last worlds so I know how it feels to just miss out on things.
“I know there is an opportunity there for a medal and I would like to get one but it is just about swimming my race.”
Amy Smith was in the lane next to Halsall in the 50m freestyle heats but couldn’t join her British teammate in the semi-finals in Barcelona.
Her time of 25.37 was only enough to finish 19th overall and, after also exiting in the heats of the 100m freestyle, Smith couldn’t hide her disappointment.
“It wasn’t very good, I haven’t made it through rounds and my aim coming here was to get into finals,” said Smith.
“It’s been a really disappointing meet for me, definitely, I was hoping to go a lot quicker than what I have.”
Elsewhere, in the 1500m freestyle heats Dan Fogg clocked 15:00.48minutes to just progress through to the final.
Having earlier disappointed in the 10km open water, where he came 38th, and in the 800m freestyle, when he failed to make it past the heats, Fogg admits it was redemption of sorts.
“The job was to come and make the final and then to see what I could do in that,” said Fogg. “Anything can happen in the final.
“It was always going to be touch and go. I’ve had four days since the 800m and every time I’ve gone in the water I’ve been feeling that little bit better and swimming that little bit faster.”
© Sportsbeat 2013