GOLD! GOLD! GOLD!

Breaststroke queen Tatjana Schoenmaker has won South Africa’s first gold medal of the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics!

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And not only did Schoenmaker claim victory in the women’s 200m breaststroke on Friday, she did so in world record fashion!

Swimming out of Lane 4 as the fastest entrant into the final, Schoenmaker stopped the clock in a time of 2:18.95 – the first individual world record in the pool at this year’s Tokyo Games.

American Lilly King took silver in 2:19.92 with her compatriot Annie Lazor in third in 2:20.84.

South Africa’s other entrant in the final, Kaylene Corbett, finished fifth in 2:22.06.

The medal was South Africa’s 89th of all time and the 20th won in swimming since 1904.

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It was also the first medal of any colour by a South African female swimmer since the bronze picked up by Penny Heyns in the 100m breaststroke at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Schoenmaker matched Heyns in winning the 200m breaststroke gold at an Olympic Games as the latter did in 1996 in Atlanta.

Earlier in the week, Schoenmaker took the silver in the 100m breaststroke.

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