Australian golden girl Ariarne Titmus and emerging rival Mollie O’Callaghan have cruised into the semi-finals of the women’s 200m freestyle in the top three positions in one of the best intra-team showdowns of the Paris Games.

20-year-old Mollie O’Callaghan, who already won a gold medal in the 4x100m freestyle relay, entered Paris with four of the fastest seven times in the world in the last year.

O’Callaghan’s heat was first up, and she started steadily before moving up to second at the final turn and blasting clear to cruise into first with a cruisy 1:55.79s.

Then it was Titmus’ turn. She was third after the first turn and cruised into the lead in the midpoint, before being threatened late on – and pipped by Canada’s Mary-Sophie Harvey at the death. Titmus finished in 1:56.23s, the third-best time overall behind O’Callaghan and Harvey.

But it was a relaxed and comfortable swim from both Australian stars, who were swimming within themselves and will ramp things up to a new level when they face off in the semi-finals (from 6am Monday)

23-year-old Titmus added to her impressive swimming resume on Sunday morning by winning gold in the women’s 400m freestyle final at Paris La Defence Arena.

Titmus won gold in the 200m freestyle event at the Tokyo Games three years ago, also claiming silver at last year’s championships in Fukuoka.

That race saw her come second to compatriot O’Callaghan, who broke the 14-year world record with a 1:52.85, a record Titmus took back at the Aussie trials with a 1:52.23.

The duel between the pair for gold shapes as one of the highlights of the meet.

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DAY ONE SWIMMING WRAP: Aussies sizzle in Paris pool

The pair headlined nine Australians in the heats on Sunday night, with two other Aussie swimmers progressing to the semi-finals – both in the men’s 200m freestyle.

There was also a heartbreaking near-miss as Jenna Strauch won her women’s 100m breastroke heat but missed the semi-finals.

Now all eyes turn to the Monday morning schedule, where Emma McKeon will be fighting for another medal in the women’s 100m butterfly final at 4.45am. She is the only Australian in a final on Monday morning, and is viewed as an outside chance after qualifying fifth fastest.

In the very next event at 4.51am, Aussie pair Max Giuliani and Tommy Neill compete in the men’s 200m freestyle semi-finals before Titmus and O’Callaghan face off at 6am in their own semi-finals (women’s 200m freestyle).

8.10PM — AUSSIE PAIR MISS FINALS

20-year-old Isaac Cooper was all the way out in lane one for his heat (out of six heats in all) – had a strong start to his heat. Normally a 50m specialist, a race that isn’t held at the Olympics, Cooper was overhauled by a fast-finishing pack to end up seventh with a 54.21s.

26-year-old Brad Woodward – a veteran of the Australian team but making his Olympics debut – finished eighth and last in a red-hot heat with a 54.34s.

Neither Australian progressed to the semis, but could have the chance to compete in relays.

7.40PM — GUTTING NEAR-MISS FOR AUSSIE DESPITE STUNNING SWIM

27-year-old Jenna Strauch had an excellent start to her women’s 100m breaststroke heat, turning in front at the midway point before storming clear to win by over a second in 1:07.27s.

After a horror run of injuries in the last couple of years, it was a stellar return to form but just wasn’t enough to make the semi-finals after reaching that stage back in Tokyo as the ninth-fastest swimmer.

7.30PM — FRANCE STAR’S EPIC STATEMENT AS AUSSIES FALL SHORT

Aussie debutant William Petric likely needed a personal-best swim to reach the final of the men’s 400m Individual Medley. At the halfway mark of his heat he was back in the field but had a great breastroke leg to get back into the mix, but finished sixth despite a strong swim.

2023 world championship runner-up Carson Foster of the USA won the heat in 4:11.07s, with Petric finishing in 4:13.58s.

In the second heat, Aussie Brendon Smith came up against France’s Leon Marchand – one of the biggest stars of these Games and likely to win as many as three gold medals. Marchand delivered a dominant statement of intent, opening up a gap of over two seconds before the freestyle leg. He cruised to the finish in 4:08.30s, roared home by an incredibly loud home crowd.

Smith, a bronze medallist at Tokyo, finished seventh in 4:14.36s and will miss the final, as does Petric.

7.15PM — DREAM START AS ROOKIE GIULIANI STUNS

Max Giuliani, making his debut for the Australian team at any major meet, was given a brutal 200m freestyle heat in his maiden Olympics race, but stunned the field to claim an upset win and book his place in the semi-finals. Giuliani struggled to find his rhythm in the first 100m of the race, but pushed to second by the 150m mark and surged home to win.

Giuliani boasts the second-fastest Australian time in history, and he needed every ounce of that pace to get past a field that included British champion Matt Richards. Giuliani finished in 1:46.15s, just ahead of Richards (1:46.19s) and Japan’s Katsuhiro Matsumoto (1:46.23s).

22-year-old Tommy Neill was in an equally fast heat including the third-fastest all-time performer in the event, David Popovici.

Neill, an all-rounder who even competed in the 1500m in Tokyo, was in fourth at the midway point but pushed hard on the final lap – only to just get pipped at the finish for fifth.

Popovici touched home in first with a rapid 1:45.65s ahead of a photo finish for the minor places.

Neill’s 1:46.27s was ninth overall across the four heats, well inside the top 16 that progress to the semi-finals. Giuliani was fifth-fastest overall.

SWIMMING SCHEDULE — DAY 2

All times AEST

Heats (Sunday night)

7pm — Men’s 200m Freestyle Heats (Max Giuliani into semis in fifth, Tommy Neill ninth)

7.15pm — Men’s 400m Individual Medley Heats (Brendon Smith and William Petric miss out on final)

7.27pm — Women’s 100m Breaststroke Heats (Jenna Strauch misses semis)

7.43pm — Men’s 100m Backstroke Heats (Isaac Cooper, Brad Woodward)

8pm — Women’s 200m Freestyle Heats (Ariarne Titmus, Mollie O’Callaghan)

Finals (Monday morning)

4.30am — Men’s 400m Individual Medley Final

4.45am — Women’s 100m Butterfly Final (Emma McKeon)

4.51am — Men’s 200m Freestyle Semi-finals (Max Giuliani, Tommy Neill)

5.15am — Women’s 100m Breaststroke Semi-finals

5.37am — Men’s 100m Backstroke Semi-finals

5.54am — Men’s 100m Breaststroke Final

6am — Women’s 200m Freestyle Semi-finals (Ariarne Titmus, Mollie O’Callaghan)