Pan Pacs step on road to Tokyo for Dolphins

AUSTRALIA’S preparations to regain the mantle of top swimming nation in the world by 2020 is well underway as athletes reach the two-year countdown to the Tokyo Olympics.

The Dolphins will celebrate the two-year mark today in Cairns as they put the final touches on their preparations for the Pan Pacific Championships which start in Tokyo in just over a fortnight.

While the meet will act as a dress rehearsal for the Australian team, director Jacco Verhaeren said he was playing a long game, with an emphasis on results in two years’ time rather than the sugar hit of a pre-Games championship gold rush.

Australia will take a 32member team to the Pan Pacs, including Rio Olympic champions Mack Horton and Kyle Chalmers, world shortcourse record-holder Cate Campbell and world champion Emily Seebohm.

“We’re two years away from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and it’s crazy to think that Rio was two years ago, it feels like just last month,” said Horton, who won the 400m freestyle at the 2016 Olympics.

“It’s exciting to be here (in Cairns) and getting ready to go to Tokyo two years out.”

Verhaeren said while the team was seeking the best results possible at the benchmark meet as some top swimmers return from breaks to the international arena, the main goal was the Olympics.

“Last year post-Rio, Maddy Groves wasn’t there, Kyle Chalmers wasn’t there, Cate Campbell wasn’t there, James Magnussen wasn’t there – all for different reasons but for the right reasons and for longevity,” he said. “We’re all training hard in Cairns and it’s just around the corner.”