Taina Basiyalo 
Tolu Young. [Photo Credit: Fiji Swimming]
Fiji swimmer Tolu Young broke five-time Olympian Carl Probert’s 25-year-old national 100m freestyle record at the TYR Fort Lauderdale Pro Series this week.
Probert’s record was set at the Sydney Summer Olympics on September 15, 2000.
Young clocked 50.17 seconds in the morning heats and then 49.98 seconds in the evening finals, setting a new Fiji Aquatics record and shattering a long-standing mark.
Meanwhile, the Fiji Aquatics Open Nationals are underway at the National Aquatic Centre, drawing top swimmers nationwide for three days of intense competition.
The event, a recognized World Aquatics qualifier for the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore this July, kicked off with standout performances yesterday.
Fiji Aquatics has wished all competitors well and thanked Fiji National University students and officials for ensuring smooth officiating throughout the meet.
Among the headline acts is rising star Anahira McCutcheon, recently named Fiji’s Junior Sports Female of the Year for 2024.
McCutcheon, who competed at the Australian Age Group Championships from April 10th to 18th, smashed two long-standing Fiji Aquatics records, clocking 25.90 seconds in the 50m freestyle and 1:05.38 in the 100m backstroke, eclipsing marks set by Caroline Pickering in 2003.
McCutcheon’s momentum continued at the same meet, where she reached the finals and lowered her own records to 25.81 seconds in the 50m freestyle and 1:04.28 in the 100m backstroke, resetting records that had stood for 22 years.
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