The day started with disappointment when Sam Short was forced to pull out of the 800m freestyle final as Australia lost one of its best medal hopes of the night.

But a gutsy Mollie O’Callaghan made sure Australia wouldn’t leave the fourth night at the world swimming championships in Singapore empty-handed after backing up her Olympic title in the 200m freestyle to win gold.

Watch the biggest Aussie sports & the best from overseas LIVE on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.

And then in a shock result, Harrison Turner won bronze in the men’s 200m butterfly final while setting a new Australian record time in the process.

O’Callaghan went to the final turn in a marginal lead and then revved it up to pull away and seal victory in 1min 53.48sec.

‘WHAT HAVE WE JUST WITNESSED?’: World reacts to Marchand’s ‘insane’ swim

Marchand SMASHES WR by whopping 1.3s! | 00:47

Second was China’s Li Bingjie (1:54.52) and third Claire Weinstein of the United States (1:54.67).

Speaking following her ruthless win, O’Callaghan said it had been a “whirlwind”. Since winning gold at the Paris Games 12 months ago, O’Callaghan has been injured and had some badly needed time to recharge.

She has spoken emotionally about struggling to live up to the hype since Paris.

“I’ve an amazing coach to guide me through this difficult time,” said O’Callaghan, who regains the title she won in 2023.

“I know it’s been hard for a lot of people to come back after the Olympics but very grateful to have a good support team behind me to get me through this mentally and physically.” O’Callaghan arrived in Singapore with the fastest time of the year in the event with 1:54.43, at the Australian trials in June.

Mollie O’Callaghan (R) celebrates with her coach after winning the final. (Photo by François-Xavier MARIT / AFP)Source: AFP

Afterwards she had choked back tears as she described coming down from the high of the Olympics, where she won three gold, a silver and a bronze.

“A positive environment definitely makes a world of difference,” the Australian said after Wednesday’s victory.

She added: “Australia in general is just so connected and we all treat each other like family, which makes it such an enjoyable ride.”

SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE – JULY 30: (L-R) Silver medalist Bingjie Li of Team China, gold medalist Mollie O’Callaghan of Team Australia and bronze medalist Claire Weinstein of Team United States pose on the podium during the Women’s 200m Freestyle medal ceremony on day 20 of the Singapore 2025 World Aquatics Championships at World Aquatics Championships Arena on July 30, 2025 in Singapore. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

Turner, meanwhile, was on the other end of the spectrum having entered his event without the weight of expectation.

But Turner made the most of his opportunity, producing not only a personal best time of 1min 54.17sec but an Australian record time to become the country’s first swimmer to medal in the men’s 200m fly event at the world championships.

McKeown produces PB to win 100m Gold! | 01:27

“If you told me I was going to win a bronze medal at the start of the year with a PB I’d be like, ‘Yeah nah, you’re dreaming’. I’m lost for words,” Turner told Channel Nine after the race.

“Being in lane eight, I just snuck in and I thought, you know, I’ve got a lane, I’ve got a chance. I never would have imagined (I would) sneak in bronze there.”

When told he had not only won bronze but made history, Turner was once again struggling to find the words.

“Wow. I did not know that,” he said.

“Unbelievably special for me. I still can’t believe it.”

Harrison Turner celebrates winning bronze. (Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

Elsewhere, Kyle Chalmers will be swimming for gold after cruising to victory in the first men’s 100m freestyle final with a time of 47.36s, which was the fourth best time overall after the second semifinal was completed.

In a shock twist, China’s world record holder and Olympic champion Pan Zhanle missed out on a place in the final after recording a time of 47.81s.

Australia could have easily finished the night with three medals, but Short was unfortunately forced to pull out his final after suffering a “nasty” bout of food poisoning.

Short, who won a silver medal on the opening night of the competition in the men’s 400m freestyle after finishing just 0.02 seconds behind Lukas Martens, made the emotional announcement in an Instagram post.

“Just wanted to let everyone know that I will not be doing the 800m final tonight after receiving medical advice,” Short wrote on Instagram.

“Extremely emotional after this decision as I was very excited to showcase what I can do and the training I have done! I still believe this is my best race distance and I was ready for a PB.

“After an awesome heat swim which I felt phenomenal, I got very ill very fast, which we believe is food poisoning from my hotel lunch. I have only been consuming meals from the hotel. My afternoon and night has been full of vomiting and all the other nasty stuff that comes with food poisoning! Not pleasant and extremely draining.

“I had full intention of competing if I started to show signs of improvement. However, this has not happened. I am going to try my best to recover as well as possible to help my team in the 4×200 relay on Friday. Sorry Australia.”

Queenslander Benjamin Goedemans, Short’s replacement, finished seventh with a time of 7:50.52.