The Commonwealth Kid has done it again as Saanich’s Ryan Cochrane won gold at the the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in the men’s 400-metre freestyle swim.
A child of the 1994 Commonwealth Games legacy, Cochrane grew up training in Saanich Commonwealth Place, Saanich’s contribution to and legacy of the 1994 Games.
Cochrane also won the 400m and 1,500m freestyle gold medals at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in India.
On Friday Cochrane was in a three-way tie for the eighth and final place in the 200m with Nick Grainger (ENG) and Ieuan Lloyd (WAL). The trio was forced into a rare swim off though Cochrane finished the tiebreak third with a time of 1:49.28 and did not advance.
The 200m is a bonus event for Cochrane, who is a favourite in the upcoming 1,500m freestyle.
“It was my first time in a swim off and the first time I have seen a three-way tie,” he said on the Commonwealth Games website. “I felt the pain a little bit on that one. But I think its’ good. That’s what we train for everyday in repeats for stuff like that. I think it would have been ok if I hadn’t swam two events yesterday, but its’ a good practice and I never have had to do this before.”
