Australian swimming superstar Mollie O’Callaghan has hung her latest gold medal around the neck of teammate Jamie Perkins in a touching gesture acknowledging her friend’s role in making the triumph possible.
O’Callaghan was seen hanging the Olympic gold medal for the 4x200m freestyle relay – her third at the Paris Games and fifth overall – around Perkins’ neck, after which the pair embraced on the edge of the pool.
Perkins was part of four swimmers in Thursday’s qualifying heat to take Australia into the final, but then she and Shayna Jack were replaced by O’Callaghan and Ariarne Titmus for Friday’s medal race.
O’Callaghan, Titmus, Lani Pallister and Brianna Throssell swam the final on Friday morning, taking gold and setting a new Olympic record of seven minutes and 38.08 seconds (7:38.08).
After the medal ceremony, the four Australian women ran from the podium to their two teammates who had dropped out for the final and hugged each other.
That’s when O’Callaghan, who swam heats for two gold-medal-winning relay teams at Tokyo 2020 but withdrew from the finals and was not awarded a medal on the podium, hung his gold on Perkins and the two shared a long embrace.
“(This team) means the world to me,” O’Callaghan told Nine afterwards.
‘The opportunity to swim alongside the girls and have two other girls swim the heats means the world to me.
O’callaghan (pictured left) along with fellow finalist teammates Lani Pallister, Brianna Throssell and Ariarne Titmus celebrate their triumph on the podium.
Australian swimming star Mollie O’Callaghan has hung her latest gold medal around the neck of teammate Jamie Perkins
“I’ve been dreaming about this moment since Tokyo, trying hard to get on this team and doing everything I can, and having these girls by my side and having their support means the world; I’ve said that many times.
‘Jamie is my best friend in training. She’s there for me. She’s been my roommate throughout the competition. She’s trained like crazy to get here. She’s had a back injury and she’s done everything she can.
“I think that gold medal means a lot to me because it represents everything that has happened and that she deserves it, and she also makes the team. If I count, there are six of us.”
Perkins, who swam in the 200m freestyle relay but withdrew from the final, was later seen wearing the medal she had been awarded.
Although swimmers in the heats do not get a podium performance at the Olympics, they do subsequently receive the medal their team wins.
Triumph in the 4x200m freestyle relay continues a stellar competition for the Australian women in the pool.
The team has now claimed five gold medals out of eight won so far by Australia at Paris 2024.