Sarah Price scored the outstanding triumph of her career when she won the 200m backstroke title in the European Short Course Championships at Antwerp on Sunday.

It was the first gold medal in an international championship event for the 22-year-old Barnet Copthall Star.

Sarah's winning time of 2min 04.59sec was a new championship best. She finished a clear two seconds ahead of her nearest challenger, Germany's Nicole Hetzer.

Her coach Rhys Gormley said: "We're thrilled about Sarah's success. She only started to swim the 200m this year and has progressed very quickly. She's still learning about pacing over the distance and will go on improving."

Sarah hoped to recapture the world record she lost when American Natalie Coughlin clocked 2min 03.52sec in the Fina World Cup in New York recently.

Gormley said: "Sarah was 1.5 seconds ahead of the record schedule after six lengths, before tiring over the last 50 metres.

"But position and medals are more important than records at major championships."

Sarah also gained a silver medal in the 100m backstroke, runner-up to Ilona Hlavackova from the Czech Republic.

She won her semi-final in a new British and Commonwealth record of 58.77sec but clocked 59.46sec in the final. The champion, who had earlier won the 50m title, took 57.75sec.

Spurred on by her achievements in Antwerp, Sarah will be focusing her sights on the Commonwealth Games in Manchester in July.

December 18, 2001 17:56