Aimee Canny steals Coetzé’s thunder as wave of swimmers book Glasgow spots at SA Nationals

All eyes were on Pieter Coetzé when the Bombela Concession Company SA Swimming Championships began in Gqeberha this week. Fresh off a triple gold medal haul at the China Open, the world champion backstroker was widely expected to dominate proceedings – and he delivered.

But by Thursday night, it was Aimee Canny who had emphatically seized the spotlight. The 22-year-old capped a sensational campaign with her fourth Commonwealth Games qualifying time, clinching the 200m breaststroke title in 2:23.61 in one of the races of the meet.

She edged out Kaylene Corbett, who touched just 0.11 seconds behind in 2:23.72, with both swimmers dipping under the Glasgow qualifying standard.

It was a dramatic finish, with Corbett, who claimed a bronze medal in the event at last year’s World Aquatics Championships, leading for most of the race before Canny surged past in the closing metres.

The victory underlined her remarkable versatility, having already secured titles and qualifying times across multiple disciplines – a shift from her previous reputation as primarily a freestyle specialist.

“I knew that we were going to go out at similar speeds and it was really fun on that last wall. I knew she was ahead of me, and I knew it was my last event, so I just kind of gave everything I could,” Canny said after her late charge secured the win.

Her dominance has been one of the defining stories of the championships, yielding four national titles and reinforcing her status as one of South Africa’s most in-form swimmers heading into the Commonwealth Games 2026.

Corbett was gracious in defeat.

“She just out-touched me, but … it's the name of the sport and you should be able to take these things on the chin and move on," she said.

While Canny stole the headlines, Coetzé quietly continued his own impressive campaign. The 21-year-old added the 100m freestyle title – and another Commonwealth qualifier – to his victories in the 50m and 100m backstroke, stopping the clock at 48.18 seconds despite a less-than-perfect start.

“I messed up my dive a bit, but I’m glad I recovered well,” he said. 

Elsewhere, Erin Gallagher claimed the women’s 100m freestyle in a nail-biting finish, touching in 55.12 seconds to narrowly beat Olivia Nel.

There were also standout performances from emerging talents and seasoned campaigners alike. Shaun Thomas secured his first senior national title in the men’s 200m breaststroke, while Karl Albertyn completed an individual medley double by winning the 400m event. Catherine van Rensburg took top honours in the women’s equivalent.

One of the most inspiring moments came from Minke Janse van Rensburg, who set a new world record for swimmers with Down syndrome in the 50m butterfly, lowering her own mark to 36.86 seconds.

By the end of Thursday’s action, seven swimmers had achieved Commonwealth Games qualifying times, with a further two later comfirmed, underlining the depth of South African swimming ahead of the showpiece in Glasgow from July 23 to August 2.