Broken foot rules Peaty out of worlds in Budapest
Adam Peaty admitted he was “devastated” at having to withdraw from the upcoming World Aquatics Championships in Budapest after breaking a bone in his foot earlier this week.
Peaty sustained the injury while training in the gym and faces six weeks out, meaning he will be unable to defend the 50 and 100 metres breast strokeand men’ s4x100mmedl eyre lay titles he won in 2019 in Gwangju, South Korea.
The men’s 100m breaststroke, Peaty’s signature event where he won Olympic gold at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, is due to start on the opening day of the championships on June 18, so the 27-year-old has reluctantly ruled himself out of the trip to Hungary.
“I’ve fortunately never had to deal with an injury in my swimming career so this is a real blow and a new challenge for me,” the three-time Olympic champion said.
“I’m already in great hands and starting to recover but, honestly, I’m devastated. I was on track for a huge summer.
“I won’ t compromise my recovery and I will use this time to reflect on what the sport means to me and what it feels like to watch someone else win a race I should be in. It’s not going to be easy!”
Peaty, who has topped the podium in the 50m and 100m breaststroke at the last three world championships, will now look towards the CommonwealthGames in Birmingham, which start son July 28.
Peaty won 100m breaststroke gold four years ago on the Gold Coast, where he settled for silver over half the distance .“I will be back in the pool as soon as I can be, with my focus on recovering and building up my strength ahead of the Commonwealth Games this summer,” Peaty added.