Van der Burgh stuns Peaty at Commonwealth Games
Cameron van der Burgh stunned world record holder Adam Peaty to win the 50 metres breaststroke gold medal on a big night in the pool for South Africa at the Commonwealth Games on Monday.
Apart from van der Burgh's triumph, Chad le Clos clinched the butterfly treble with victory in the 100m final for his 16th Commonwealth Games medal and Tatjana Schoenmaker completed a breaststroke double with victory in the 100m final.
The boilovers kept coming on the penultimate night of the swimming with Bronte Campbell upstaging her sister Cate's bid for a fourth gold medal with a stirring come-from-behind win in the 100m freestyle.
Van der Burgh hurtled off the starting blocks and defied Peaty's efforts to run him down in the frantic one-lapper, winning by four hundredths in 26.58 seconds to inflict a rare defeat for the Englishman and complete a 50m hat-trick.
The South African, who beat Peaty in the event at the 2014 Glasgow Games, celebrated wildly by punching the water before climbing on to the lane rope and pumping his fists in delight.
It was 29-year-old van der Burgh's third consecutive win in the event in what he says is likely to be his final Commonwealth Games.
Peaty has proved indestructible in the 50m and 100m in recent years and was expected to carry off the breaststroke double, but London Olympic 100m champion van der Burgh had other ideas.
"To get the triple in the 50 breast and to come through the years and finish on such a high is something that is really special," van der Burgh said.
"Adam and I have a really tough rivalry and he's had the up over me over the last few years and to get on top of the podium and see my flag and my national anthem played will be a career highlight."
Peaty took the defeat on the chin and had praised for his victor.
"As an athlete I'm disappointed. I've never had a 50m Commonwealth title. I've had the rest but not this one," Peaty said.
"But as a person, and as a character in the sport away from the racing, I'm so happy for Cameron."
Elsewhere, Mitch Larkin became the first man to win the backstroke treble at the Commonwealth Games, leading an Australian clean sweep in the 200m final.
Larkin won gold in 1:56.10 from Bradley Woodward and Josh Beaver to add to his previous wins in the 50 and 100m events at the Gold Coast.
Teenager Ariarne Titmus claimed Australia's first victory in the Games 800m freestyle in 20 years with storming win in 8:20.02 in another one-two-three for the hosts.