Adam Peaty has his heart set on making 2018 as successful as previous years following a weekend to remember in and out of the pool.
Peaty achieved his best Sports Personality of the Year award finish just a day after success in Copenhagen, celebrating gold and bronze in the European Short Course Championships.
The 22-year-old has already been named as part of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games swimming team, set to continue the breaststroke domination he has had since 2014.
For the coming year Peaty has launched ‘Project 56’ – an aim to break his own world record and become the first man to swim 100m breaststroke long course in under 57 seconds.
However, despite being certain of breaking the record in the future and holding the ten fastest times in the history of the 100m event, legacy-man Peaty is unsure whether his goal of will be achieved at the forthcoming Commonwealth Games.
“I don’t think you can ever know," said the Rio 2016 Olympic champion.
"The Games are early this year, they’re in April and you never really hit your peak until later in the year. So maybe it will come this season, maybe next, but by the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, I’m pretty sure I’ll be in the right shape and ready to get that.
“But I always surprise myself anyway so I’d never say never. I believe if I can get down to that 56-low mark, it won’t be touched for a long time which is what I want. I want to leave a legacy in the sport that can’t be touched.”
Peaty’s bid for a legacy has certainly not been passive, not only through his astonishing swimming performances but through his relationships with fans.
He regularly goes into schools and clubs to run swimming sessions and went as far as to give his winning gold medal from the European Championships to a young girl in the crowd.
And despite being in the midst of his own career, the Olympic champion knows he has a big part to play in swimming’s global development.
"We can go out here - these top 12 Sports Personality guys and girls - and inspire the next generation,” he added.
“I think that performance is in history and you can get loads of golds but her, the girl in the crowd is going to remember that for the rest of her life, so if she wants to be best swimmer in the world, the best doctor, she's been inspired and that's what sport's about for me."
Peaty’s year also brought about two world records in the space of three races, on his way two world titles, celebrating his achievements at the weekend’s Sports Personality of the Year awards.
Flying in from Copenhagen, the 22-year-old came fifth with 63,739 votes, his highest placing yet.
The European Short Course Championships saw strong swims from all 12 swimmers
brought to Copenhagen by British Swimming, with all achieving personal best times.
Peaty claimed two medals at the meet with a gold and a European record of 55.94 seconds in the 100m breaststroke and a bronze in the 50m breaststroke.
Elsewhere, Ben Proud won silver in the 50m freestyle final while Duncan Scott secured bronze in the men’s 200m freestyle.
Sportsbeat 2017