Cate Campbell falls short in bid for fifth Olympic Games, emotional post-race reaction

Australian swimming star Cate Campbell’s bid for a fifth Olympic Games has come to an emotional end after she finished seventh in the 50m freestyle final, missing out on a spot for Paris.

Campbell, who narrowly missed out on the 100m freestyle final, had put the heartbreak behind her to qualify for the 50m final in Brisbane. However, she needed a top-two finish to secure her spot for the Olympics, but came in seventh.

Shayna Jack won the final with a time of 23.99 seconds, while Meg Harris finished second in 24.26 to book her first individual swim at the Olympics.

A teary Campbell hugged her fellow swimmers post-race before addressing the media, saying, “Unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be. I would have loved to have that fairytale ending more than anything else.”

Despite the disappointment, Campbell reflected on her career with pride, saying, “I can leave the sport with my head held really high. I came back to try do something no one’s done before and my god, I gave it a really good crack.”

The Australian Olympic swimming trials also saw singer Cody Simpson fall short in his bid to qualify for Paris, finishing fifth in the 100m butterfly final.

The trials continue with other events on Saturday night, and Australia will announce its team for the Paris Olympics after the final event.

The meet is being held at the Brisbane Aquatic Centre and can be watched on Nine and 9Now, with the finals from 7:30pm AEST each night. The final team will be announced on Saturday night.