World, European and Commonwealth medallist Andrew Willis believes the time is right to step away from the pool after announcing his retirement from swimming.
The 27-year-old breaststroker was a mainstay in the British Swimming setup, competing at London 2012 and Rio 2016, where he finished just outside of the medals in the 200m breaststroke.
He won bronze in the same event at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, and silver at the 2016 World Championships in Windsor.
But for the Hampshire native, also a 2015 European bronze medallist, there was one event that stood head and shoulders above the rest.
“For me the moment that will stay with me forever will be when I came out at London,” he said.
“The atmosphere and noise was just exhilarating.
“Rio was probably my highlight in terms of being the best prepared and giving my best performance, but London was definitely special.”
Having spent the last eight years based at the Bath National Centre for Swimming, Willis also completed a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering alongside his career in the pool.
And despite the European Championships in Glasgow being just around the corner, Willis believes that he has made the right decision to call time and concentrate on helping the next generation of swimmers.
“It really seemed like the right time for me to retire. I thought about it and spoke to my coaches, lifestyle advisors and family and thought whether I had another two years in me to get to Tokyo.
“Ideally I would have liked to finish after the Europeans, but now this has given me time to help out in the chemical engineering department at Bath, go on holiday and think about my next step.
“I’m really going to miss everyone at Bath, but the fact I’m here still helping out has given me some structure until I decide what to do next.”
National performance director for British Swimming, Chris Spice, was quick to praise Willis for what has been a successful and decorated career.
“Andrew has been a huge part of the squad during my tenure, and will be missed by the staff and athletes alike,” he said.
“He has battled on the world’s biggest stage and always given his full focus to every task we have given him.
“Whilst we are sad for him to be leaving us, we wish him all the best for his next step. And know if he puts the level of focus and determination into that as he did in the pool he will surely make a success of it.” Sportsbeat 2018