Clearwater swimmer Bobby Finke comes from behind to win Olympic gold

Clearwater’s Bobby Finke charged from behind in the men’s 800-meter freestyle swimming race Thursday to capture the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

Finke was in fourth place after the final turn of the 16-lap race but in a furious burst of speed he overhauled the three competitors ahead of him to beat Italy’s Gregorio Paltrinieri to the wall by 0.24 seconds.

This race was added to the Olympic program for the first time. Finke’s winning time was 7 minutes, 41.87 seconds.

Finke, who swims for the University of Florida, also came from behind to win gold in the 1,500-meter freestyle Aug. 1.

– Joe Henderson, Extensive Enterprises Media