NO REST FOR THE QUICKEST
Scott insists sleep can wait as he looks to add to his personal medal haul
NO sleep till Tuesday? Well, Duncan Scott will hope to catch a few sneaky winks between now and the end of the swimming programme here.
But the Team Scotland star, who picked up a third bronze medal with a barnstorming finish in the 200metres butterfly, can’t be accused of napping on the job.
Scott, who had finished third in the 200m freestyle on Friday and also helped Scotland claim bronze in the 4x100m relay, went straight from last night’s medal ceremony to the warm-up pool.
Then he returned to finish second in his semi-final of the 100m freestyle, easily qualifying for today’s final.
‘I just want a lie down,’ grinned Scott, who will also compete in the 200m individual medley plus at least one relay event.
‘It was late last night then early this morning, so it’s been a hard couple of days, but it’s been good.
‘I’ve done a lot of different events so far. There have been positives and negatives in each one. But, more or less, I’ve been pleased with how I’ve performed so far.’
Comparing his sport to some more well-remunerated athletic endeavours, Scott refused to complain about his packed schedule, pointing out: ‘I couldn’t play 90 minutes of football!
‘Myself, Chad (Le Clos) and James (Guy) all had the relay last night, the 4x100. Then we had 200 fly first event this morning.
‘We are probably in the same boat — we got back to the room about quarter-to-one last night.
‘You need to get yourself down then you’re back to the pool for about 8.30am.
‘The turnaround is quite quick but that’s the way international swimming is. That’s why we put in the hard hours we do.
‘I’ve had mixed results on the international stage. There are times you struggle to sleep at night.
‘After the 4x200m silver in Rio, that was one of the nights where limited sleep took place! I think I had the next morning off, though, so that was alright.
‘When I got in last night, I passed straight out. The more experienced you are, it’s about the nerves and stuff like that, how you feel.’
Yesterday was Scott’s first experience of butterfly racing on the international stage. Yet coach Steven Tigg was confident in his athlete’s ability to compete even in a final boasting world-class strength.
And that faith was repaid when he went blasting past Aussie hopeful Grant Irvine in the final
ten metres, ignoring the agony crippling his limbs to pinch a spot on the podium.
Scott, who said he was not even aware of where he had finished at first, struggled to explain the kind of agony he was going through at the business end of the race, saying: ‘It’s really tough.
‘I don’t know if I can describe it. Your arms and legs are both in lots of pain. It’s about trying to stay composed and think about the process of what will get your hand to touch the wall first.
‘That’s when you need to stay composed, think what you’ve done in training and what your coach has told you to do.
‘It was me and the Aussie next to me. I didn’t know what the rest of the race was doing. So I thought I’d try to beat him then see what happens. I knew he went out a bit quicker than me, so in my head I thought he might die a bit more.
‘I always seem to come back strong in the fly but never as quick as that.
‘Every race I’ve finished I’ve not known where I’ve come until I’ve taken my cap and goggles off and seen. All my races have been ridiculously close, so I’ve had to have a good look. You see numbers all over the shop and don’t know where you’ve come.
‘It’s my first time racing 200 fly internationally. It’s a PB (personal best). I’m really pleased with how things have gone and it’s a good indication of where I’m at.
‘Steve probably had more confidence in this event than I did. This morning he said I could put in a strong performance and tonight he said I could challenge.
I just want a lie down! It has been a really hard couple of days
‘In my head I agreed and have full confidence — but it’s not till I’m out there with 100 to go that I think I’m in a great situation.
‘The confidence Steve has in me really helps and that relationship over the years is paying off now.’
Ross Murdoch, meanwhile, has backed the Scottish swimmers to sign off from these Games with a demonstration of all-round strength in depth — by winning a team medal in the 4x100m medley relay final in Tuesday night’s closing session.
Murdoch, who backed up his silver-medal swim in the 200m breaststroke with a fifth-placed finish behind all-conquering Adam Peaty in the 100m last night, said: ‘I think we’ve got real depth in Scotland now.
‘In the past, that’s where we’ve struggled. We’ve always had one or two really good athletes.
‘When you look back to when Hannah Miley was coming through, she was the big name. You had Robbie Renwick, Kris Gilchrist, Michael Jamieson — a few big names. But the depth of our nation is coming along.
‘I think we’ve got a great opportunity in this relay on Tuesday. I think all the boys know we’ve got a great chance.
‘We’ve got our 100 fly swimmers up tomorrow. We had Duncan swim the 200 butterfly tonight and come away with a medal.
‘So I think we’ve got a bunch of good guys in there who can throw something down.’