The Auckland swimmer Lauren Boyle has won a silver medal in the 800 metres freestyle at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships on the Gold Coast.
Lauren Boyle Photo: PHOTOSPORT
The 26-year-old wasn't able to hold on to American teen sensation Katie Ledecky, who was a fraction outside her own world record after winning the 200 freestyle earlier in the night.
Boyle's time was just 19/100ths of a second outside her national record.
It was only New Zealand's third medal at the Pan Pacific Championships in the last 17 years and the first silver medal since Danyon Loader at Atlanta in 1995.
Waikato's Matthew Stanley was just a fraction outside his national record, finishing seventh in the 200m freestyle in arguably his best swim of the year.
Boyle says she's really happy to go faster than Commonwealths and get a solid 800 time for the year.
She says it was good swimming next to Ledecky again, as the teenager makes everyone else in the race lift the bar, which is pretty exciting.
Boyle says it's nice to get this done on the first night because it can be a stressful event.
The quadrennial Pan Pacific Championships is a four-day meet with full strength teams from USA, Japan, Canada, Australia, the rest of the Pacific and other non-European nations.
Today's racing features Glenn Snyders in the 100m breaststroke, Laura Quilter, Lee and Lucie-Smith in the 100 freestyle, Stanley, Dunlop-Barrett, and Ewan Jackson in the 400m freestyle, Main in his favoured 200 backstroke and Boyle to lead the women's 4x200 freestyle relay.
