Canada's Penny Oleksiak wins 2nd medal of Rio Olympics

By Callum Ng, CBC Sports

Canada's Penny Oleksiak powered to a silver medal in the 100-metre butterfly final in Rio on Sunday night.

It is the second medal for Canada at these Games, both coming from the pool, following a bronze in the women's 4x100 freestyle relay on Saturday — which Oleksiak anchored.  

The 16-year-old was third at the 50-metre wall, and closed well to improve her Canadian record to 56.46 seconds. It was also yet another world junior record for the six-foot-one teenager. 

"I was definitely nervous a few hours ago, like shaking in my hotel room," said Oleksiak after the race.

"Throughout the race I wasn't even thinking. I was just trying to keep my head down. The first few seconds after I touched the wall I was just trying to get my breath. I didn't even know I had won a medal until I looked up and saw all the Canadian flags being waved. That was a great moment."

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Sweden's Sarah Sjostrom blew away the field and broke her own world record with a time of 55.48 seconds to win gold. Oleksiak beat American Dana Vollmer, the 2012 Olympic champion, who finished third in a time of 56.63 seconds.   

Oleksiak's brother Jamie plays for the Dallas Stars, and was pumped after the race.

With two Olympic medals in less than 24 hours, the Toronto-native helped erase a 20-year podium drought for Canadian women's swimming.

Saturday's relay bronze — captured by Oleksiak, Sandrine Mainville, Chantal Van Landeghem, Michelle Williams, and Taylor Ruck — in effect got it done.

They captured the first women's medal since Marianne Limpert's 200-metres individual medley silver from Atlanta 1996. 

Oleksiak's silver on Sunday was the first individual medal since Limpert in 1996, vanquishing the drought entirely.

Phelps wins his 19th gold

In the night's finale, the men's 4x100 free relay saw a comfortable American win, giving Michael Phelps his 23rd Olympic medal. 

In this order Caeleb Dressel, Phelps, Ryan Held, and Nathan Adrian combined for a time of three minutes 09.92 seconds. 

France was second and Australia third.

There were Canadians in the final. Santo Condorelli of Kenora, Ont., Calgary's Yuri Kisil, Markus Thormeyer of Tsawwassen, B.C., and Evan Van Moerkerke of Tillsonburg, Ont., were seventh.

​Ledecky and Peaty smash world records

The Katie Ledecky show has officially begun. The American lopped 1.91 seconds off her own world record in the 400-metres freestyle to win gold in a time of three minutes 56.46 seconds.

Ledecky won by almost five seconds.

Great Britain's Jazz Carlin won silver, with the bronze going to American Leah Smith. Toronto's Brittany MacLean was fifth.

It is the first individual gold medal for Ledecky in Rio, adding to a silver from the 4x100 free relay on Saturday. The 19-year-old will also swim the 200 and 800 free plus the 4x200 free relay later in the meet. The freestyle-specialist is a medal threat in each race.

In the men's 100-metres breaststroke it was Great Britain's Adam Peaty who would not be denied. 

The 21-year-old swam a blazing 57.13 seconds for a gold medal, winning by 1.56 seconds, an enormous margin in the two-lap race. 

2012 Olympic champion Cameron van der Burgh of South Africa, finished with silver, while American Cody Miller won bronze.

Two Canadians to Monday's finals

The Canadian women's team continues to roll as Rachel Nicol of Lethbridge, Alta., and Kylie Masse of Windsor, Ont., moved through to the final eight in the 100-metre breaststroke and backstroke respectively.

Both are Olympic rookies and Masse, 20, is the fifth-seed for tomorrow's final while Nicol, 23, grabbed the final spot and will be in lane eight. 

Dominique Bouchard of North Bay, Ont., was 12th in the backstroke and didn't advance.

With files from The Canadian Press