London - Arabstoday
Ellen Gandy cemented her place in Britain's London 2012 team by winning the 200 metres butterfly in the UK trials at the Olympic Aquatics Centre here on Wednesday days after taking the two-lap event. World silver medallist Gandy made a blistering start and was 1.84 seconds inside Katinka Hosszu's 2009 European record at the final turn. But the 20-year-old was made to pay in the "suicidal" closing stages and a gruelling final 25m saw her just do enough to hold off Jemma Lowe and win in a time of two minutes 06.01 seconds. Double world finalist Lowe was 0.36 secs adrift with both women well within the qualifying time. "I was so unbelievably nervous before that race," Gandy admitted afterwards. "I thought I'd be more relaxed because I was on the team for the 100m and I felt I was going to faint in the call room. "My nerves must have taken me out really fast and I absolutely paid for that on the last 50m - I don't think my coach is going to be happy with that at all. "I've just got to go back and analyse what happened and hopefully it won't happen again. "If you swim it properly it (the last 25m) shouldn't be too bad, but that was suicide. I just wished the wall was closer, I felt like I was swimming uphill. It was very painful." For Lowe, qualification was a massive relief after she missed out in the 100m butterfly. "It has been such an emotional week for me and I am just really happy I managed to get my place on the team. "I was so nervous, I knew I had to keep relaxed and I'd be able to do it." Meanwhile Bath training partners Andrew Willis and Michael Jamieson made the team in the 200m breaststroke after they produced the form that saw them to last year's World Championship final. Jamieson was fifth in Shanghai, three places ahead of his team-mate, and he led at the final turn on Wednesday but Willis, in a well-judged effort, swam the last 50m 0.9 secs faster than Jamieson to edge past and touch in 2:09.33. His time was just 0.32 secs off Kris Gilchrist's British record set in 2009 during the 'super-suit era. Jamieson was 0.51 behind with both men setting new personal bests some way inside the qualification time British record holder Simon Burnett won the 100m freestyle but his time of 49.33 secs was outside the qualifying mark.