SA swimmer Chad le Clos has achieved the feat of being the greatest performer at the Commonwealth Games, but he won’t be satisfied until he’s No1 again.

Le Clos won a silver medal in the men’s 200m butterfly, finishing behind New Zealand’s Lewis Clareburt. The silver ensured he became the joint-most decorated athlete at the Games, joining former shooters Michael Gault and Phil Adams on 18 medals. 

Although he would have loved to reach the milestone with a gold medal, Le Clos was proud of the achievement on Sunday evening. 

“I’m proud to have the most medals in the Commonwealth Games history,” said Le Clos. 

“If you had asked me 12 years ago if I would be standing here, I would have a huge smile on my face. I’m extremely proud to represent my country,” he said. 

The great swimmer now has his sights set on getting gold in the men’s 100m butterfly, which will be at 9.45pm on Tuesday. Should he get the gold gong, he’ll be on his own as the most decorated athlete in the Games and also fulfil his promise of standing on top of the podium. 

“I did promise myself that by the end of 2022, I will be on the top of the podium, whether that’s this week in the 100m butterfly or the World Championships in Melbourne. I promise I will be back on top of the podium, that’s a guarantee.”

“I’ll be a little bit harder to win the 100m but I don’t shy away from a challenge. I’m excited to represent my country at the highest level,” Le Clos said. 

Meanwhile, by 4pm SA time on Monday, Team SA was fourth on the medal table – with four gold, one silver and one bronze. The tally is however far behind the three top nations: Australia with 22 gold and 55 total, England (14, 38) and New Zealand (10, 19).  

SA’s women B6-B8 lawn bowls para pair of Desiree Levin and Victoria van der Merwe take on England in the bronze medal match on Wednesday. 

The women’s fours lawn bowls team of Johanna Snyman, Esme Kruger, Bridgit Calitz and Thabelo Muvhango has qualified for the gold medal match.