Jackson v Adlington Is Back On!

Double world silver medallist swimmer Jo Jackson will be competing for the first time in a serious meet next weekend in Swansea since the world championships last august where she finished runner up in both the 400 and 800 metres freestyle finals.
The 23-year-old, who also won bronze in the 400 metres freestyle at the 2008 Beijing Olympics behind champion Rebecca Adlington, missed out on the December Europe v USA “Duel in the Pool” in Manchester due to problems with asthma stemming from influenza but will reassume her rivalry with Adlington in both the 400 and 800 metres freestyle when Germany come to west Wales to take on Britain in another “Duel in the Pool.”
Jackson, who took bronze at the worlds in Rome alongside Adlington in the 4 x 200 metres relay, is expecting her British friend and rival to bounce back from a disappointing 2009 that saw the double Olympic champion claim just two bronzes at the world championships.
The pair are likely to be scrapping it out for gold in both the 400 and 800 metres at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi in October, as well as at the European championships in Barcelona this summer, where Italy’s 400 metres world champion and world record holder Federica Pellegrini will also be a major contender.
But Jackson, who saw her 400 metres world record set last year taken away from her by the Italian, also expects to improve.
“I was delighted to win two silvers at the worlds last year but I want and need to kick on from that, especially with the London Olympics in 2012 looming so close,” she explains. “Silvers are great but I race to win and if I’m going to win Commonwealth and European titles, let alone an Olympic gold, I have a lot of work ahead of me.
“Fortunately the likes of Federica and Beccy make sure I’m pushed all the way. I’ll be up against Beccy in Swansea and although we’ll be swimming for the same team against Germany I’m sure we’ll be very competitive. Both of us will be in the middle of hard training and nowhere near peaking so I wouldn’t expect great times. But it would become a competitive race between us if we went for a swim in a paddling pool!”
Last year Jackson had the edge on an Adlington somewhat distracted by all the post-Beijing euphoria, beating her at the trials and then twice in Rome, but the Yorkshire girl knows Adlington will come back hard this year.
“She’ll be a lot stronger this year, that I can guarantee,” she says. “I’ve known Beccy a long time and she’s a great competitor. She’ll be hurting after last year but she’ll learn from it and use the experience. I had a better year but I still saw my world record taken away from me, and fell short twice on a world title, so we’ve both got a little to prove this year.”
Both will be swimming in the same swimsuit, albeit with Jackson wearing an Adidas and Adlington a Speedo, after the controversial, performance-enhancing swimsuits were outlawed from January 1st this year. Jackson wore a suit that was believed to have had a slight buoyancy advantage over that worn by Adlington but now both will be wearing a uniform, cut at the knees with an open back swimsuit.
“It’s very welcome because now people will focus on the swimmers and not the suits,” is Jackson’s take on this. “I don’t think it’s going to make much if any difference to me or my performance. I was winning races and beating the best before they came in and you still had to train and use your talent in racing when you wore them. Although the times may be a little slower in the short-term I think the best will still win because of their talent.”