AT: I’ve never really had those thoughts. But I would say,definitely off these Olympics I have enjoyed how normal people live. But I look at it as,“I have this tiny window of opportunity to make the best out of myself as an athlete,and I have to make the most of that”. I will kick myself if I finish my career knowing I could have done more.
Fitz: Three years ago,you set your sights on beating the G.O.A.T. for the 400 metres freestyle,the Greatest of All Time,Katie Ledecky,from America. Neophytes would think the tactics would be six words:“Ready,set,go like the clappers.” But you and your coach Dean Boxall spent days,weeks,months,years,working out methodically how to take her down. What was the plan?
AT: I guess Dean and my sports science team are the ones that really studied Katie and figured out how she swims and collected all the data and I guess tried to nail a pattern of how she races the 400. So we had to make a plan that we thought could outdo that. So for me,it was to be able to have this great front-end speed but be able to out-split her on the second half of the race and looking back now[it was a] pretty gutsy plan because it was almost like I was doing a Ledecky on Ledecky. Dean and I made a commitment to each other:There are 100 stones,and we will turn over each one. Turn up every day with a smile on your face,no matter what’s going on in your life. Go till you can go no more. And then do it again,and again and again,no matter what. I believe I stuck to my end. I believe that he stuck to his.
Fitz: Well here you are on the starting blocks. You look to your left. It is Katie Ledecky,the Greatest of All Time 400 metres swimmer. The Olympic champion. The world record holder. What are your thoughts?
AT: I was fully expecting for me to be shitting bricks. But surprisingly,it was the most relaxed I’ve ever been at international competition. And I think it was because of the confidence – not cockiness – I had in myself the past six weeks leading into the Olympics and those years of training. I knew I had turned over all 100 stones,done everything possible. So pretty much I was just listening to my heartbeat. I was breathing as calmly as possible.
Fitz: GO! Ledecky goes out to the front,but you are holding on,and with 60 metres to go,you make your move. Australia is going crazy. “Go! Go! GO!” Do you have time for conscious thought? Could you think,“I’ve got you,girlfriend,and now I’mgoing to run you down”?
AT: I did have little snippets of that,mixed with “Wow,this is actually happening”. It was unbelievable on the last 50 metres. It was like the adrenaline just kicked in,and I had this extra power in my legs and I knew I had her.
Fitz: You win! You have got the gold! Your coach is literally bouncing off the walls of the stadium like a ping-pong ball in a blender. But then there is Nietzsche,the German philosopher,who wrote of “the melancholy of all things completed”. You’ve just won your first Olympic gold medal. In that moment of victory,did you feel the exaltation you always thought you would feel or did that only come later?
AT: When I hit the wall I think I just forgot where I was. It’s very hard to comprehend everything in a split second. It wasn’t until I saw the “No. 1” next to my name on the scoreboard that I realised I’d actually done it. I’d achieved my childhood dream and that’s impossible to describe to anyone who hasn’t experienced it because it’s something that you just absolutely worked years and years for,it’s all come down to that one moment in time,and when you think about it,it’s quite overwhelming. But the first emotion wasn’t joy,it was relief.
Fitz: The other star of the show was Emma McKeon,who won four gold medals. You two had a moment?
AT: Yes,we had massive programs,with so many events we literally hardly had time to breathe. And near the end,after Emma was part of the team that won gold in the medley relay,we formed a tunnel for them as they came off,and Emma and I came face to face,and we hugged and we both cried. We had done it.
Fitz: On to Paris,2024? Are you at base camp for Everest?
AT:I am underground. I had a massive break. I had about nine weeks out of the water and I did absolutely zero exercise. I didn’t do anything. I pretty much became a socialite of the century. I had multiple commitments every day going to events. But I hit the water again two months ago,and am starting to feel normal again.
Fitz: Last question,and a serious one. Just before the Olympics,Maddie Groves and Emily Seebohm,made serious allegations about the culture of Australian swimming,with abusive behaviour by coaches,fat-shaming,and all the rest. You’re a vastly experienced swimmer. Did you see the things that they were referring to?
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AT: Hand on heart,in my entire swimming career – from seven years old to now – I’ve never experienced any of what these allegations are,and I’ve never seen it. I’ve been very fortunate with the coaches that I’ve had,who have all been male,and I’ve never experienced it personally. I can’t speak for anyone else but myself. But I believe that the culture that we have on this last Olympics team has been the best culture I’ve ever been a part of.
Fitz: I hate to be a fanboy. But it’s been a wonderful pleasure to speak to you and I really wish you well for the future. You’re a great Australian.
AT: Thank you!
Tweet of the Week
The #ReligiousDiscriminationBill has always boiled down to:1). “How dare you try and discriminate against me because of my beliefs...” 2). “Of course I can discriminate against you ... because of my beliefs.” @RnClelland
Quotes of the Week
“The MP sitting beside me leaned over. Also thinking he wanted to tell me something,I leaned in. He grabbed me and stuck his tongue down my throat. The others all laughed. It was revolting and humiliating.” – An anonymous submission quoted in Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins report about staff’s experiences of the workplace culture in Parliament House.
“Ever since Eve was accused of tempting Adam with the apple. Women have been blamed for the bad behaviour of men.” –Ghislaine Maxwell’s defence attorney,Bobbi Sternheim in her opening address in the trial of Jeffrey Epstein’s former partner for sex trafficking and worse.
“I would have preferred to go another way. But if one year in[from] having the vaccine,of having national campaigns,of having media explaining again and again what this is about,that we have such a high degree of insecurity,of people believing in fake news … we have a necessity to take this drastic step.” –Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg telling CNN why,after February,those who remain unvaccinated could face fines for as much as €7200 ($11,385).
“Non-vaccinated people could pay a higher Medicare levy in the same way as those who earn above a certain level have to pay more if they don’t have private health[insurance]. If they choose not to be vaccinated that’s their choice,but it imposes a higher burden on the medical system.” –Independent economist Saul Eslake urging the federal government to consider slugging unvaccinated people with higher Medicare fees to help to repair the budget and pay for the pandemic’s ongoing toll on the healthcare system.
“When you are an obsessive compulsive type and entrusted with work that you believe in and that you believe is deeply important,the byproduct becomes that people in your life that deserve more from you,especially your family,get much less than they deserve.” –Christian Porter in a Facebook post on Tuesday announcing that he is leaving federal politics with the oldest cliche of the lot.
“Women we spoke to told us they felt lucky when they had not directly experienced sexual harassment or sexual assault. I was shocked at how the young workers who perhaps arrive really positive and enthusiastic and feeling privileged to work there,how quickly they become in an environment where this bullying and harassment is normalised. The sexism,the sexual harassment,the drinking,the ‘work hard,play hard’ kind of culture has been around for a long time.” –Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins about life in the Federal Parliament.
“Strollout.” –Macquarie Dictionary’s Word of the Year. It was made popular by Sally McManus but she credits its creation to her colleague Liam O’Brien as its creator.
“We don’t need to have a knee-jerk reaction,we need to have a proportionate and balanced response.” –Dominic Perrottet faces up to the omicron variant of COVID-19.
“He would want it with all his heart because he’s an athlete,and we would love that too. Under these blackmails and conditions,he probably won’t. I wouldn’t do that. And he’s my son,so you decide for yourself.” –Srdjan Djokovic,father of Novak,about the chances of Novak appearing at the Australian Open next year.
“Oh,it’s just water everywhere,I guess.” –Rebecca Ryan,resident,resigned to the floods in Gunnedah.
“Josephine Baker,you are entering into the Pantheon because,[despite being] born American,there is no greater French[woman] than you. France is Josephine.” –French President Emmanuel Macron as Josephine Baker — the US-born entertainer,anti-Nazi spy and civil rights activist — was inducted into France’s Pantheon,becoming the first black woman to receive the nation’s highest honour.
“I don’t think the laws do the job. I’ll be voting no on the Morrison government’s laws. I can accept that there might be a problem here. I don’t think there’s evidence that there is widespread voter fraud. I don’t think there is evidence that it’s becoming widespread.” – Senator Jacqui Lambie kills stone-dead – at least for this term – the government’s controversial voter ID laws.
Twitter:@Peter_Fitz