Foster backing Peaty to be back to his best for Paris Olympics

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - JULY 14: <<enter caption here>> attend The National Lottery X 2023 World Aquatics Championships event at Manchester Aquatics Centre on July 14, 2023 in Manchester, England. Mark Foster (Commonwealth gold medal winner), Ellie Challis (Paralympic silver medallist), Grace Harvey (Paralympic silver medallist), gathered at the Manchester Aquatics Centre to highlight the impact of National Lottery investment into British Swimming. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images for The National Lottery)

British swimming legend Mark Foster is confident Adam Peaty will claim a third successive Olympic title next summer in Paris despite his current break from the top of the sport.

Peaty spoke candidly about his struggles with mental health earlier this year and is not part of the British team competing at the World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan over the next fortnight.

The 28-year-old currently holds both the 50m and 100m breaststroke world records and is the two-time Olympic champion in the latter.

And Foster believes Peaty will come back stronger for Paris as part of a British team that is now more competitive than ever.

“He has needed a bit of time away and hopefully he will come back in a much better head space and a much better physical space,” said Foster.

“I have always maintained that no one will ever beat him unless he is injured, and that is what happened at the Commonwealths last year.

“I expect to see him back and standing on top of the podium having won three Olympic golds in a row in the 100m breaststroke.

“I have seen some pictures of him on social media, it is nice to see him smiling again but it goes to show what we see on the surface is not always what is going on beneath the surface.

“He seems to be addressing all his problems and putting things right, so he gives himself the best opportunity next year.”

While Peaty may be absent in Fukuoka, the rest of Britain’s biggest names head to Japan hoping to put in some statement performances a year out from the Paris 2024 Olympics.

National Lottery players have transformed swimming in the UK, with £467 million invested since National Lottery funding began.

Since then, Great Britain enjoyed its most successful Games in Tokyo two years ago, finishing third in the medal table behind pool powerhouses USA and Australia with four gold medals, including a first gold in the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay since 1908.

And Foster believes the gap is increasingly closing, with the six-time world champion backing the likes of 50m freestyle world champion Ben Proud to go big in both Fukuoka and Paris.

“A year out from the Olympic Games, the world steps up,” he added. “The year after an Olympics there is always a little drop off, some people give up and some people let their guard down but a year before we are really going to see people at their peak.

“The British swimming team has shown over the last two or three Olympics now that we are not at American level, but we can definitely compete against the likes of Australia when historically we have been way behind.

“We have shown the strength in depth in our swimming programme now because of the relays. When you can put good relays together and become Olympic champions, you are showing you have got depth in your squad not just a couple of individuals at the top.

“It comes down to investment, and that comes down to The National Lottery which has enabled us to have better facilities, better coaches and ultimately swimmers getting better results.

“Ben Proud won the Worlds, Europeans, and Commonwealths in the 50m free and the 50m free is ultimately the hardest event because everybody wants to be the fastest swimmer on the planet.

“I will be interested to see if he can retain his title, he is looking in really good shape.”

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