HOW FAITH SAVED ELIJAH’S CAREER
EVERY time he races, just before the gun goes off, Elijah Winnington drops to one knee to say a quick prayer.
One of the favourites for gold in the 400m freestyle, Winnington doesn’t pray to win, or to ask for any favours, he does it to say thanks for what he’s been given, not what’s coming. “It’s massively important,” Winnington said. “You’ll see me give honour to God once I finish my race too. Faith is massive in my life and I believe it is something that gets me through the water.”
Trusting in his own ability has also helped Winnington revive his career after his self-belief started to sink. Two years ago, he was left questioning his future in the sport after a rare disappointment. Twelve months later he faced the heartbreak of leaving his longtime coach, who he regards as a father figure.
A child prodigy who had been likened to Ian Thorpe – partly because they both race in middle distance freestyle events – Winnington has carried the burden of being labelled the next big thing in Australian swimming for as long as he can remember.
He was also told, for as long as he can recall, that a lot of boom, teenage swimmers burn out before they get to senior ranks, a prophecy that he feared had come true when he missed out on the team for the 2019 world championships.
“It’s always something that stuck in the back of my mind,” he said. “It’s almost like I believed those rumours or those accusations to be true.”
Rattled and unable to practise during the pandemic lockdown, Winnington decided to leave the Gold Coast and his coach Richard Scarce to join Dean Boxall’s squad in Brisbane
Breaking the news to Scarce was the hardest conversation he’s ever had. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t crying,” Winnington said. “Me moving had nothing to do with him as a coach or his program, I just felt like I needed to do something different. Richard will always be someone that I hold very close to my heart.”
Whether by design or coincidence the move has produced the results Winnington hoped for and he heads into Tokyo ranked No.1 in the world in 400m freestyle. He will also swim the 200m freestyle and the 4x200m relay.
His winning 400m time at the Australian Olympic trials was 3:42.65, the fastest in the world for two years, but that wasn’t what pleased him most. When they turned after 300m, Winnington was chasing 2016 Rio gold medallist Mack Horton, but he dug deep to storm home and get to the wall first.
“That’s given me a lot of confidence because it shows that my training is paying off and that I’m a tough racer because that’s exactly what I’m going to need to be,” he said. “I’m not going to buckle under the pressure and I’m just going to do the best I can for my nation and my friends and my family
and my coach because that’s all I can really ask for.”