Peaty will use Games to boost Paris hopes

ADAM Peaty famously spent London 2012 drinking in a field while age-group rival Craig Benson was competing at the Olympics, writes Paul Eddison of Sportsbeat.

That was the wake-up call he needed and the turning point for the man who now sits as the greatest breaststroke swimmer of all time.

A decade on, Loughboroughbased swimmer Peaty, below, will finally get the chance to compete at a home Games when he gets on the blocks at Birmingham 2022 – and yet it almost did not happen.

A broken foot, suffered on a training camp in May, forced Peaty onto the sidelines, costing him a chance to defend his world titles and putting his Commonwealth participation in doubt.

The 27-year-old has made it back and will be gunning for gold in the 50m and 100m breaststroke, the former the only major title to elude the triple Olympic gold medallist.

And while it has been a far from ideal preparation,

Peaty is itching to get his opportunity to race in home waters, just an hour down the road from where he grew up in Uttoxeter. “Birmingham is as close to home as it’s ever going get for me. I can’t wait. Crowds are what make me do what I do. When you take that away, it’s weird. I don’t like it,” he said, referring to winning gold in Tokyo in front of an empty arena.

“These last few months when I haven’t had the smoothest rides, I’ve had things taken away from me. “I saw my world championship titles being taken away without any control over that, and that’s given me a new lease of life, a hunger that I was missing.

“The 50m Commonwealth title is the only one I haven’t won, so I better not get DQd,” he joked. “But part of the reason for my success over the years is that I treat every single race as one I haven’t won. “Nothing is ever given to you. With that mindset, I’m very focused on what I need to do.”

The Commonwealth Games hold a special importance for

Peaty.

It was in Glasgow eight years ago, the closest he has come to a home Games to date, where he made his international breakthrough.

There he won the 100m breaststroke and he has not lost in the event since, smashing world records and becoming the first Briton ever to defend an Olympic swimming title.

Just as Glasgow was the springboard for even greater things, Peaty is planning to use Birmingham as a chance to extend his dominance of the sport even further.

“Going into those Games, I was a complete underdog, but I knew I loved to race and if I was near anyone on the back end, I would have them,” said Peaty.

“So, it was very different, I’m a little bit bigger now, a little heavier but also a lot more powerful, a lot stronger and my world record is 56.8 which I did in 2019.

“So now it’s about trying to nail down and get to those times, this is the start, two years out from the Paris Olympics.”

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