That tied her with 16-year-old Canadian Penny Oleksiak, the pair sharing a new Olympic record and both receiving a gold medal.
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Manuel picked up a silver medal earlier this week with her teammates in the women’s 4×100-meter freestyle relay.
“Hopefully it will get them inspired”, Manuel said. He’s won 13 individual golds, and he’s still got the 100 butterfly on Friday and the medley relay on Saturday. Among others, the final included world record holder Cate Campbell, 2015 World Champion Bronte Campbell and 2012 Olympic gold medalist Ranomi Kromowidjojo. She nearly chose to pursue ballet before settling on swimming. Simone says she and Lia Neal have a very special relationship and that she “wouldn’t be where I am right now without her”. “I turned after basically everyone”. “She (Manuel) deserves it as much as me”.
“I opened the door to the room, and she got up and gave me a hug and said, ‘I wasn’t going to fall asleep until I gave you a hug, ‘ and that really meant a lot to me”, said Manuel, who gave the US a gold medal in the event for the first time since 1984. Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden captured bronze in 52.99 seconds.
Murphy, Phelps and Manuel brough the US gold total to 11 and an overall mark of 24 with two days to go, while Oleksiak won Canada’s first gold medal of all sports at the Olympics.
“My sister was bawling her eyes out. Every chance I get on those blocks and he’s right there, it’s unbelievable”, Lochte said of Phelps, who was in the adjacent lane.
“I don’t remember much of it over the last 15 meters”, Manuel said.
“I want to finish my career how I want to so that’s what I’m doing”, Phelps said.
Manuel made history by becoming the first African-American woman to win a gold at the Olympics for swimming.
It’s been a long journey and I’m super excited with where it has brought me. As she told NBC Thursday night, “It means a lot”.
Maybe Ledecky’s three golds in Rio are rubbing off on her. Manuel is an Olympic rookie, but she said in training camp that she was more excited than nervous about her first Games. This is also the first time a Canadian has won four medals at a summer Games.
She also set a Canadian and world junior record en route to qualifying for the women’s 100-metre freestyle finals.
Until now, Cullen Jones has been the face of swimming for minorities in America, having won two golds and two silvers at the last two Olympics. Only Katinka Hosszu of Hungary had a faster time than Caldwell (2:06.03).
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“I was talking to Kylie the other night saying ‘all you guys on the podium, it makes it that much more attainable and it normalizes something that is such an wonderful feat, such an awesome accomplishment,”‘ Caldwell said. “Our ancestors did. What we do [now] is a reflection of what they have done for us”.
