‘I’ll be back’: Chad le Clos targets one more Olympics

Chad le Clos insists he wants to compete at his fifth Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028 after crashing out on Friday, on the penultimate day of swimming at the Paris Games.

Le Clos was 24th overall in the first-round 100m butterfly heats in 52.24 seconds, in his only event of the week, while compatriot Matthew Sates was 35th in 54.53. Both swimmers were eliminated ahead of the semifinals.

“It’s been a tough four weeks. I got a bit of a grade two tear in the upper shoulder, and I probably shouldn’t have raced, but I can’t help it,” Le Clos said after the race.

The four-time Olympic medallist admitted he was disappointed with the result.

Despite the niggle in his shoulder affecting his build-up to the showpiece, he had hoped for more.

“I’m grateful to be here, but I want to be there (in the evening semifinals). It’s not in my nature to swim in the morning and just be done with it,” he said.

“But it is what it is. It was an uphill battle but I tried my best and there was nothing more I could have given.”

Looking ahead

Though he admitted he would reassess his future after the World Short-Course Championships in Budapest in December, and he still needed rehab on his shoulder, he hoped to continue putting up a fight in the pool for another four years.

“It wasn’t meant to be (in Paris)… but we’ll be back in four years. Don’t worry, we’ll be back.”

Though 32-year-old Le Clos had not been expected to make much of an impact in the latter stages of his career, former world short-course champion Sates was disappointing in Paris.

While double medallist Tatjana Smith, Kaylene Corbett and Pieter Coetze all reached finals, 21-year-old Sates was eliminated in the opening round of all three of his events.

Meder progresses

However, while Le Clos and Sates missed out on the semifinals, Rebecca Meder managed to progress to the penultimate round of the women’s 200m individual medley, to be held on Friday night.

Meder, the last remaining South African in the swimming gala at the Paris Games, clocked 2:11.96 for 16th place overall, grabbing the last available spot in the semis.