Jake in healthy setting
IT WAS the dodgy convenience store snack that took out one of Australia’s best swimmers.
A humble chicken sandwich has been identified as the item likely to have given Olympic medallist Jake Packard salmonella poisoning last year, ruining his chances of competing at the world championships.
Thinking he was the victim of a 24-hour bug, the breaststroke champion decided not to head to hospital and suffered the consequences as the parasite struck, leaving him flat for several months afterwards.
“It took about two to three months just to do its own natural course,” Packard said.
“I didn’t even think anything of it (at the time) but it certainly got to me.
“Five weeks later we raced again and it’s probably the worst I’ve ever swum.
“We got some blood tests and it came back positive to salmonella and I just had to take it easy for a couple of months.
“It definitely knocked my immune system but I’m on top of things now.”
After just missing the Olympic final at his Games debut, Packard had been determined to build on his Rio results last year.
The food poisoning caused a frustrating delay but the 23year-old is nearing his best again ahead of Commonwealth Games trials on the Gold Coast and is determined to make up for lost time.
“To see where I was last year was a real hiccup and then to really bounce back has been such a big confidence boost for myself,” said Packard, who only just missed dipping under the 1min barrier in the 100m breaststroke at the Victorian and NSW titles last month despite being in hard work.
“To get back in the water and know that I’ve still got the ability to swim fast – we know that we’re doing everything right.”
Packard is thriving in the high performance environment created by coach Chris Mooney at the University of the Sunshine Coast and has Brenton Rickard’s Australian record in his sights as he looks to break 59 seconds.
“The goal is to try and hit that 58 this season and maybe look close to that Australian record,” Packard said.
Mooney said Packard’s training capacity had grown since his recovery and the 60.11sec heat time he swam at the NSW championships while in work was a reflection of how well his training capacity had grown.
Packard will hone his preparations for the Games trials by tapering his training and getting plenty of rest.
But there’s no chance he’ll grab a convenience store meal.
“They reckon (the salmonella came) from a chicken sandwich, which I just picked up to have a little nibble before I got to the pool,” he said of last year’s incident. “It’ just unfortunate, those things happen but I’m never buying a chicken sandwich from (a convenience store) again.”