Could do better

PEATY ‘NOT HAPPY’ DESPITE GRABBING ANOTHER GOLD

ADAM PEATY warned the world he can go a “lifetime” unbeaten in his favourite swimming event – providing he stays hungry.

The Olympic champion retained his Commonwealth 100m breaststroke title yesterday, despite being, in his words, “nowhere near my best”.

He still won by more than half a second from England team-mate James Wilby, to complete four years without defeat, since capturing the same crown in Glasgow.

But Peaty was not happy and admitted: “That’s the first time ever I didn’t feel in control of my race and let the event get to me. I was thinking of the end result rather than the process.

“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.

“It’s not the best version of me and I want to go out there in the 50m breaststroke and get a better version.”

If ever there was a clue as to what makes the 23-year-old the supreme competitor he is, it was his reaction poolside at the Optics Aquatics Centre.

“This has been a big learning curve here,” added Peaty, who clocked 58.84secs – well outside his 57.13 world record. “My stroke feels nowhere near what it should, so we’ve got to go back to the drawing board.

“I can go undefeated for a lifetime if I keep at it but, in moments like this, I have to think hard about what I’ve done wrong in training and how I can get better.

“It’s a half-mental, half-technical thing.

How can I keep the sport new, how can I keep my motivation high? I’m obsessed with selfimprovement, but can

I keep pushing and pushing?”

Another Olympic champion with much to ponder is Alistair Brownlee, who failed for the second time in 48 hours to land a Commonwealth title.

A silver medal with brother Jonny, Jess Learmonth and Vicky Holland in the mixed team triathlon relay was no consolation for missing out on the podium in Thursday’s individual competition.

Brownlee (left) refused to commit himself to the next Olympics, and said: “I’ll leave it to the end of the year to decide on Tokyo.”

But after holders England trailed in 52 seconds behind Australia, Jonny said he had no doubt the disappointment would fuel Alistair’s desire for an Olympic hat-trick in 2020.

“He loves coming to these events, he loves being competitive,” said the younger Brownlee. “So he’ll want to go to Tokyo.”

Weightlifter Zoe Smith bounced back from missing the Rio Olympics to claim silver in the women’s -63kg category.

TOP TWO: Silver medalist James Wilby (left) with gold medal winner Adam Peaty