Wild story here on SwimNews.com (source Courier Mail), on how Australia’s Alicia Coutts was elbowed in the head and spat at by a European opponent on the way to her blocks for the 100m freestyle final at the Shanghai 2011 World Championships.
“I’d never had anyone try to psych me out before. It must be a sprint freestyle thing,” Coutts tells the CM. “I was sitting in the marshalling room next to a particular swimmer and she elbowed me in the head . . . then she continuously kept elbowing me. She just spat in front of me while I was walking … it was disgusting. People just playing mind games. It can’t be a fair race, I would never do that to someone. She obviously thought I was a threat, she felt she needed to put me off.”
Here is a video from that event – as mentioned on Speed Endurance Swimming Blog, Alicia Coutts doesn’t look too happy.
Suspects are these Europeans in that final: gold medalist Jeanette Ottesen (DEN); gold medalist Aliaksandra Herasimenia (BLR), bronze medalist Ranomi Kromowidjojo (NED), 4th placed Francesca Halsall (GBR), and 5th placed Femke Heemskerk (NED).
Heemskerk has already reacted on Twitter, saying she didn’t do it.
https://twitter.com/#!/FemkeHeemskerk/status/170835570434646017
Halsall saw it happen
https://twitter.com/#!/franhalsall/status/170869100954927104
Kromowidjojo doesn’t think it was her, but says sorry just in case
https://twitter.com/#!/ranomikromo/status/170995374050394112
Coutts says no, it wasn’t Kromowidjojo
https://twitter.com/#!/Alicia_Coutts/status/170998238281871360
But now it is suddenly in plural ? (hey, there are only two left by now)
https://twitter.com/#!/Alicia_Coutts/status/170994300535058433
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