Peaty’s anger is mark of a champion
AFTER it was proven once more that nothing raised on land can beat Adam Peaty, he took to beating himself. It really was quite a slapping.
Not good enough on the second 50 metres, he said. Not in control of the race, he added. He took a little pause in his analysis and then got right into the meat of it.
The stroke isn’t where it needs to be, he explained. And the strategy was all wrong for the time of year. And he couldn’t quite get up for it. And something needs to change. Urge n t l y. S i mpl y must . Not enjoying himself enough, either.
In all, it was quite a funny bit of self-flagellation from a man who had just won a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.
But that’s what these folk are — funny. Always have been a funny breed, the proper champions, which c e r t a i n l y e n c o mpas s e s Peaty, who is arguably the most dominant athlete in all sports at the moment.
Yesterday’s race, the 100m breaststroke that he considered such an abomination, actually supported the point.
Forget that it won him a gold medal, because he has plenty of those. In fact the tally now stands at 18 across the majors of Olympic Games (one), world championships ( five), European championships (nine), and Commonwealth Games ( three). Forget also that he is unbeaten in the long course 100m breaststroke in four years, dating back to his gold at Glasgow 2014.
Shelving those magnificent considerations for a moment, instead focus on his margin of victory in the Gold Coast — 0.59sec, from England team-mate James Wilby, the 200m breaststroke champion.
That gap, it should be noted, was nowhere near as big as it might have been because Peaty swam the final in a Games record of 58.84sec, which is way down on his world record of 57.13sec. But the difference between Peaty and Wilby was still the biggest in a 100m breaststroke final at the Games since Adrian Moorhouse beat James Parrack i n 1990 — f our years before Peaty was born. So the performance was probably not too disgraceful, a c t u a l l y. But champions, eh? Never satisfied. And that is why it is so impressive to hear someone speak in such a manner in the wake of what should be rated as a fine victory.
‘Even though it’s a gold medal and it’s four years undefeated and that has completed the circle, the quad, I’m not happy with that performance because it’s not the best version of me,’ Peaty said.
‘ It’s been a big learning curve here, my stroke feels nowhere near where it should feel like, so I think we’ve got to go back to the drawing board now and see what’s worked and how we improve that.
‘I think that’s the first time ever where I didn’t feel in control of my race and let the event get to me.’
‘I was nowhere near my best. Yes, at the touch you go, “Oh my god, I’ve won gold”, but I look at the time and go, “That’s not the best version of myself”. I’m obsessed with self-improvement.’
Peaty was asked how long this absurd winning run can continue in the 100m and it was only with his answer that you might glimpse the depths of that ‘obsession’.
‘A lifetime, if I keep at it,’ he said. ‘Moments like that where I wasn’t at my best, I’ll think about how to rectify it to get better to be the best version of myself.’
When asked if he could stay unbeaten until the 2028 Olympics, when he plans to retire, the 23-yearold said: ‘I can. The more worrying thing is how can I keep motivation high. That’s going to be my next challenge now, to keep pushing.’
The immediate challenge is the 50m breaststroke, which starts today. It would be a silly bet indeed to put money on anyone else.
Meanwhile, Nile Wilson followed his team gold in the gymnastics by winning the all- around, and the Brownlee brothers, Alistair and Jonny, helped win silver in the triathlon mixed team relay. Sophie Thornhill and Helen Scott won the women’s B&VI 1,000m cycling time trial, while England team-mates Joe Townsend and Jade Jones won the Para-triathlon events. Top seed Nick Matthews was knocked out in the quarter-finals of the squash.