The Doha 2024 World Championships, which kick-started on February 2, will draw its curtains on February 18. Several athletes are looking to build on their resumes. But the most interesting thing is, that this event will work as an Olympic qualifier as well. Having girded up strong, the 30-year-old Nic Fink threw a serious challenge to his rivals, only to walk home with the most coveted gold.

The American 100m breaststroke record holder offered a scope to the 2016 Olympic gold medalist to craft another winning story. But after the previous win at the qualifying round, Nic Fink alerted himself. He couldn’t have sacrificed the final gold at any cost.

Nic Fink with the 100m breaststroke finals win

Specializing in the breaststroke events, Fink pitched up to snatch the ‘gold’ from reigning champ Adam Peaty. He successfully played his moves, clocking in at 58.57. On the other hand, Olympian Peaty with 8 World titles under his belt, finished third with 59.10. The X post of NBC Olympics and Paralympics reads, “Nic Fink captures the first gold medal for the United States at #AQUADoha2024!”

Peaty, being the top-tier athlete he is, recognized his mental hindrances early. So, he was on a much-needed mental health break last year to forge a comeback like never before. He’s building step by step for the Paris Olympics, and his performance on Sunday after the 2019 Worlds, stood as a testament to months of weaving magic in water. The one who issued, “With this sport you just never know what’s going to happen in an Olympic year”, just witnessed his prophecy turn into reality.

READ MORE: Doha World Aquatics Championship: Giving Team USA a Run for Their Money, Two Chinese Athletes Clinch Yet Another Gold

On the other hand, there’s Fink, who couldn’t display his best in the semi-finals, and took the sweet revenge at the right time. With icons like Nicolo Martinenghi, and Qin Haiyang on the roster, the 2022 World Short Course gold medalist’s feat was nothing short of blazing. He said after the win, “There’s a bunch of great breaststrokers this year and just getting a chance to race them at this point in the Olympic year was great”. Let’s wait for his Olympic maneuvers now.

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