SINK OR SWIM
Murdoch: I knew I had to sort myself out after Olympics misery floored me
ROSS MURDOCH missed out on a World Championships medal last night in Hungary.
But the Commonwealth and European champion from Scotland was thrilled to have overcome his personal struggle following the Rio Olympics.
Murdoch finished fourth in his favourite 200 metres breaststroke event in Budapest but the 23-year-old Stirling swimmer was happy to be in the medal mix.
Russia’s Anton Chupkov won in a championship and European record of two minutes 06.96secs.
Murdoch clocked 2mins 08.12secs to finish 0.65 off the podium after clocking his fastest time in almost three years to get to the final.
He said: “I’m a bit disappointed to have gone faster than I did last night in the semi-final. I think I’m more disappointed in that than coming fourth. But I’m delighted to come here and to be back on my best.
“If you’d have told me in April that I would have come away with a final spot and come so close to a medal, I would have been absolutely jumping for it because I was not in a good place at the trials.”
Murdoch beat Glasgow 2014 poster boy Michael Jamieson, the London 2012 silver medallist, to Commonwealth gold and won the European title in May 2016 in London after failing to qualify for the Olympics in his favourite event a month earlier following illness.
Instead Murdoch, who made the Rio semi-finals of the 100m breaststroke won by Adam Peaty, had to watch as Britain’s swimmers enjoyed their best Olympics for over 100 years.
He could, however, end the World Championships on a high.
He is hoping to be in tomorrow’s heat of the 4x100m men’s medley relay, before passing on to Peaty for the final when Britain will be optimistic of a medal.
Murdoch said: “I’m in a great place now. This has just been a trampoline, a springboard, into the next season.”