PERTH, Sept 22: Australia was still only fourth or fifth in world swimming despite the 23 gold medals it collected at the Commonwealth Games, double Olympic champion Kieren Perkins said today.Perkins, who finished third in the 1,500 meters behind teenage star Grant Hackett of Australia and South Africa's Ryk Neethling, said the `status quo' of the team's performance at the Atlanta Olympics had been maintained.
``The Americans are a lot better than us,'' he said at Perth Airport on arrival for the Australian short-course championships starting Thursday.
``We got a lot of silver, a lot of bronze, our relays were fantastic,'' said Perkins. ``When you've got that sort of depth it creates a lot more competitiveness,'' he added.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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